Heroes & Villains
by Ritzbitz8
Summary: An original story where good Hikari chosen are forced into battle with evil Yami chosen! With more psychotic foes pulling the strings, will the two groups be able to eventually put aside their differences? Please R&R! Sequel to Heroes No More.
1. Prologue

There is a way to define the word hero. That would be a person who risks his or her life to save people from peril without having to think twice about it. A hero is someone who can easily judge what is right and what is wrong, and knows how to make wrongs right. Heroes are sparse among the masses but a saving grace when around.  
  
Next we have the word villain. A villain is not a hero by any means... in fact a villain is the opposite. Villains do not care whom they harm in their quests for whatever they desire... money, power, etc. A lot more villains exist in the world than heroes and there are always more appearing day by day.  
  
Now lets say we have a group of heroes who also have partners. Sidekicks if you will. These sidekicks are called Digimon; wondrous creatures from another world who have incredible fighting power and the ability to increase their strength by changing their form.  
  
Our heroes and their sidekicks saved the universe from an impending doom called the Shadow, and restored everything to its original harmonious state. And although they faced villains throughout their quest, none of them really were on the same level as the heroes. None of them thought the same. None of them had the same lifestyle. None of them were normal people like the heroes.  
  
But that may not last much longer. For our heroes have people watching them...  
  
"What is the project on the Digimon experiment?"  
  
Four people sat enshrouded by darkness around a table in a secret room. The only light in the room was given off by a flickering computer monitor. One man set a cigar down on an ashtray and folded his hands together, looking at his colleagues. He spoke in calm, collective voice.  
  
"Gentlemen... let us not get restless. It has been a year since the Digimon left our world... and while most people's memories were erased of them, thankfully we have remembered and been able to carry on our research in secret."  
  
A skinnier man with a raspier voice slammed his fist down on the table, annoyed.  
  
"We know that! Just tell us the results of the project! I didn't go through all the trouble of extracting data from that kid's D-Volver for nothing! Do we have our own now?!"  
  
"Yes we do." answered the calm-voiced man. "But unfortunately we are unable to use them."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"We are too old, already learned. We needed younger, untapped minds to carry our Dark D-Volvers."  
  
"So you're saying we'll make some kids do our work for us?"  
  
"Exactly. They may be hard to control at first, but once under the power of our Dark D-Volvers their minds will begin to decay until they are bent only on destroying the children holding the Light D-Volvers."  
  
"And once that is accomplished, the barrier on the world will be broken and we will be able to travel to the world of Digimon and harness all of their power!" added a man with a deep voice.  
  
"Do you have the children chosen yet?" asked the fourth and final man, who had a very strong and commanding voice. The calm man shook his head.  
  
"No. You work closely with children, do you not? Spy on our target: Lee Trainer."  
  
"Why?" asked the raspy voiced man. "I know Lee Trainer well, but what should I do with him?"  
  
"Find people close to him and his other chosen friends. Preferably people from his college. With them working in the same vicinity as our own chosen children, it won't be long before they destroy each other and weaken the barrier."  
  
"Give me the names of the others."  
  
"Sam Chambers, Allison Williams, Earnest Lightwind, Arik Pearson, Nathan Klentz and James Willington. Make sure they're all being watched. With our threat, their partners are sure to return to attempt to protect them."  
  
"We'll just have to make sure our Digimon are stronger. Remember, children with troubled lives are easier to manipulate than your average child."  
  
"I won't fail. I'll choose well."  
  
The man with the commanding voice and the man with the raspy voice got up and left the room. The deep voiced man looked at the calm man, who was obviously their leader.  
  
"How goes Projects B and C...?"  
  
"Excellent. Once the barriers are weakened and projects B and C go through... we'll be able to steal a veritable army of Digimon from Trinity Server to crush this pathetic world."  
  
"We are far too old to fight ourselves though... but..."  
  
"But...?"  
  
"I've been doing extensive testing, and have found out something interesting. I'll let you in on it when I'm sure."  
  
The deep voiced man got up and left as well. The calm man reached for his cigar again.  
  
"Trainer and his friends won't know what hit them... until they're laying cold and dead on the floor of our laboratory with their partners being transformed into mindless killing machines... or maybe it won't come to that..."  
  
The man thought to himself for a second and chuckled.  
  
"Nah... of course it will come to that. My dark Chosen will be unstoppable!"  
  
He switched off the computer monitor and his sinister laugh faded with the darkness... 


	2. Infusion of Darkness

You do not await your destiny... your destiny comes to you. This rule can be either wondrous or painful. Unfortunately most of the time, it is painful. As we are about to see...  
  
"Keeyah!"  
  
"Whoa, you almost hit me with that kick!"  
  
Lee Trainer, now nineteen years old, swiftly ducked a kick that flew in his direction. He leapt back, his feet touching the soft mat of the sparring arena in the Karate dojo. He smoothed his white uniform which was emblazed with the symbol of the Lunn dojo on its back and right of the chest. The blonde-haired boy prepared his counter-attack.  
  
He threw a punch at his opponent, but the female karate student held up her two forearms to block his fist. The only thing he hit was the soft fabric of her uniform which was the same as his.  
  
The dark brown haired girl threw back her hair, which had blonde streaks in it and went down to about her breast area. She glared at him with her blue eyes, and her eyebrows settled down giving her an expression of determination.  
  
"You aren't going to defeat me today, Lee."  
  
"We'll see about that, Amara. We are Master Lunn's two top students, you know. We're equal."  
  
Amara glanced around the room. Their sensei: Master Lunn was standing at the northern end of the mats surveying the match. About seven other students who wore the Lunn dojo uniform were witnessing it as well.  
  
"Hiya!" yelled Lee. He threw himself forward, preparing to punch Amara but she fell backwards before he could punch her.  
  
"What the--"  
  
She used her hands as a ground to break her fall and then kicked upwards, hitting Lee in the side of the head! He grunted and fell backwards onto his butt. Amara stood up triumphantly. Her guard was let down, though, and Lee swooped his foot along the ground and knocked her down as well. She went to get back up...  
  
(What is Amara doing?) thought Lunn. (I trained her better than that.)  
  
(What?!) thought Amara, surprised. (How did I hear that!?)  
  
Amara looked at him nervously and then another thought pushed its way into her head. This time from Lee.  
  
(Hoo, Amara's a tough cookie. That makes her even hotter, though.)  
  
"Hey!" she hissed at him. "Get your mind out of the gutter!"  
  
"Wh-what?" stammered Lee. Amara's eyes widened at him and before she had a chance to reply, she could hear all of her other classmates!  
  
(What is Amara snapping about?)  
  
(Why can't that girl keep things together?)  
  
(Stupid canker sore! It hurts like hell!)  
  
(Maybe she's insane. That would explain why she's acting so weird!)  
  
"Aggh!" she screamed, dropping to her knees and holding her head in pain. "Make it STOP!!!"  
  
"Amara!" shouted Lee, worried. He went to run to her aid but she lashed out and punched him in the stomach! She then flung her fist right at his face, but another hand grabbed it... Master Lunn's. The grey-haired stern master looked at Amara angrily.  
  
"Amara! Do not strike out with rage! Maintain your foc--"  
  
Amara flipped him over her shoulder and the karate sensei landed hard on his back on the ground! Amara gripped her head, unable to push the thoughts of other people out!  
  
(Whoa, she just took down Master Lunn!)  
  
(What is she doing!?)  
  
(God, she's a freak!)  
  
"SHUT UP!!!" she screamed in agony. She wasn't really screaming at anyone, but in her mental state she attacked the nearest standing thing.  
  
She threw another wild punch at Lee, but he grabbed her fist in mid- air. Lunn then karate chopped her in the back of the neck, knocking her to the ground, unconscious.  
  
"What the hell was that...?" gasped Lee as the whole dojo stared at the fallen Amara, who was breathing heavily and twitching.  
  
Heroes & Villains, Chapter 01: Infusion of Darkness  
  
Amara groaned weakly and tried to open her eyes. She tasted hair in her mouth, which she assumed was her own. As her vision came back, she stared up at what looked like a bright light. Wait, it was a bright light... tons of them.  
  
(I'm in a hospital. I hate hospitals.)  
  
Amara sat up and rubbed the back of her neck, it really hurt. She gasped as she sat up and tried not to move her neck at the same time. She kicked the blanket off her legs and saw she was still wearing her dojo uniform.  
  
"Amara...?" asked a voice, opening the door to her hospital room. She sat back down on her hospital bed, making sure not to move her neck. She saw a familiar blonde boy walk in, still wearing his dojo uniform too.  
  
"Hey Lee" she said, ashamed. "I-- I have no idea what happened to me..."  
  
"Are you sure?" he asked, shutting the door behind him. "You told me to get my mind out of the gutter when I only said in my head that you were hot."  
  
"So what? Men are just easy to figure out."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Would you quit asking me that?" she asked, more of a demand than a suggestion. Lee nodded and she stood up again. Her neck felt less stiff now and she cracked it.  
  
"After sensei knocked you out, he had me take you here. You've been asleep for three hours."  
  
"Yeah... well, I think my head is straightened out now." she said to reassure him that she wasn't crazy. "Thanks for taking me here but I can walk home by myself."  
  
Amara went to leave, but Lee didn't move from in front of the door. She crossed her arms impatiently.  
  
"Can I help you?"  
  
"I called your parents. They're waiting outside for you. They don't seem to be too happy with you."  
  
Amara's eyes widened. "Why the hell did you call them?! It's my one goal in life to stay the hell away from them!"  
  
"They can't be all that bad..." protested Lee. "They do fund your karate..."  
  
"Aside from that, me and them hate each other. Lee, I want you to go out and tell them that I have to stay in here another night... so they'll leave!"  
  
Lee looked at her, skeptically. He bit his lip and looked at the floor.  
  
"Amara, you aren't well. Either you go home with them, or you allow me to escort you back to your dorm room."  
  
Amara sighed. "Fine, Lee... you can walk me home."  
  
- - -  
  
The next day:  
  
In the middle of the city of Horam is a college called 'Richard Trainer College', named after the man who founded it. RTC for short. Richard Trainer is also the mayor of Horam and Lee's loving father.  
  
Inside the walls of RTC, Lee was walking through the dormitory area, looking for number 213. Lee was wearing black jeans and white t-shirt, accompanied by a gold necklace that Alison (his girlfriend) gave to him. When Lee found 213, he simply opened the door without knocking and let himself in.  
  
"Yo, Arik! If you don't hurry the hell up we're gonna be late for Art... again."  
  
A boy with brown hair came running out of the bathroom into the main room, squeezing a red shirt over his arms and around his body. Arik was another of the previous Chosen children but like Lee, has forgotten about Digimon and went on to college.  
  
"Yeah yeah, Lee!" said Arik, grabbing his sketchbook and art pencils. He tucked them under his arm and motioned for Lee to get out as he moved towards the door. "At least you, Nathan and Ace live in a house. I'm stuck in this crappy dorm room!"  
  
Arik shut the door behind them and locked it. Then they bolted as fast as they could for the next building, where their art class was. They ran out the door onto campus and slowed to a walk.  
  
"So re-election day is coming up soon, eh?" asked Arik. Lee nodded.  
  
"My dad should be able to reel it in pretty easily like he has the last two elections. Like, come on... he founded this freaking college just for me to go too."  
  
Arik laughed a little. "Your dad has a power trip, I think. My dad is retarded."  
  
Arik's dad used to be an alcoholic and as a result, would abuse him. His dad quit drinking a year ago, but hasn't got too much nicer. He began dating a woman six months ago, which has distracted him a bit more from berating Arik. As can be imagined, Arik is pleased with the change.  
  
"Ah... well..." began Lee, trying to change the topic. "You know what we're doing in art today?"  
  
"Sculpting ice, if you can believe it. They're gonna turn the temp way down in the room."  
  
"And of course, I'm wearing a T-shirt." said Lee, annoyed. Arik nodded and went to open the door into their building of destination, but the door flung open and whacked him in the face. A red-haired girl stormed out of it, with no real respect for where she was going.  
  
"Outta my way, dorks." she said as she walked past.  
  
"Ow! The least you could do would be apologize!" shouted Arik, rubbing his nose. She flipped him off.  
  
"You okay?"  
  
"I'll live. Who was that?"  
  
"Her name is Jeska... she's in my psychology class. And speaking of class... we're late."  
  
"Crap!"  
  
- - -  
  
The art room:  
  
"Alright class, it's time to begin our ice sculptures." said the art teacher, Ms. Smith. "First we'll go through safety precautions..."  
  
Amara groaned as she listened to the boring drivel that the teacher yammered on about. The spunky girl was now dressed in casual clothing that consisted of her favorite colors: shiny and glossy. Her pants and over jacket were silver and very flashy. The jacket was unzipped down past her breasts to show off her red t-shirt and she wore three bracelets on her left arm. Her necklace was gold, with her favorite jewel: the topaz inside it.  
  
(I really don't care about these safety precautions... I know how not to cut myself with a knife.) thought one student in the class. Amara snapped out of her trance and looked at the student.  
  
"Oh no... not again..." she sighed. "Ms. Smith, may I be excused?"  
  
"Yes, Amara."  
  
Amara ran out of the room as quickly as she could before she had a repeat performance of the last night. She leaned up against the walls and massaged her temples.  
  
(What is happening to me...? Am I going insane? Am I really hearing these voices...?)  
  
"Oh, Amara. Hello." greeted a strong, commanding voice. Amara recognized it. It was the voice of Dean Rathjen. The man in his early 50s still had light brown hair and was very well-built, wearing a suit.  
  
"Hello... Dean Rathjen..." she sighed. "I'm... um... having a headache. I think I'm going to go back to my room and sleep."  
  
"A headache? It seems pretty bad if it knocked you out last night."  
  
"You heard about that...?"  
  
"You sensei told me about it. I know him, you know." replied Dean Rathjen. Amara blushed a little, embarrassed.  
  
(She's perfect.) thought Dean Rathjen.  
  
(What does he mean by that...?) she thought, having heard it. (Oh my god... I'm hearing things again...)  
  
"I feel flustered... I'm going to go..."  
  
Amara turned and walked away, passing Lee and Arik on her way out.  
  
"Hey Amara, you alright?" asked Lee.  
  
"I'm FINE! Why won't anyone leave me alone?!"  
  
Amara turned and ran out of the hallway, leaving Lee and Arik dumbfounded.  
  
"Dude, you know her?" asked Arik, seemingly awed by Lee's connection with Amara. "She is so hot!"  
  
"I know." replied Lee. "She's my sparring partner at karate."  
  
"You should try and hook up with-- oh wait... you got a girlfriend."  
  
"Yeah, Arik." said Lee, annoyed at him. "Why does everyone always forget that?"  
  
"Trainer! Pearson! Get to class!" ordered Dean Rathjen. "Your dad may pay my salary, but that won't stop me from suspending you."  
  
"Sorry Mr. Rathjen." apologized Lee. He and Arik headed for class.  
  
"That's Dean Rathjen now! We're not in high-school anymore!" shouted Dean Rathjen after them as they headed into class. Rathjen was their principal in high-school, but when the college was founded, he got transferred to the college. He put his hands in his pockets and wandered off.  
  
- - -  
  
At some point later in the day... someone was making a phone call...  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Yes, hello Mr. Irvine." said the caller, speaking into the phone. "I believe I've found our first candidate... she's exactly what you were looking for and more..."  
  
"Is her name Amara Aquilla by any chance?"  
  
"Yes.  
  
"Good. We had already pre-selected her. Our other colleague took some Digital data and implanted it into her brain. Have you witnessed the side- effects of it yet?"  
  
"Telepathy."  
  
"Perfect."  
  
- - -  
  
Later that night:  
  
At around eight PM, night time was just setting in. The sun was down and the sky was dark, with all the stars beautifully shining in the December sky. The air was crisp and refreshingly cool as it snowed fairly heavily. Amara walked down a street with her hands tucked away in her pockets, ignoring the cold. She walked up to a small house and kicked the door instead of knocking.  
  
"Amara. Come in." said the stern voice of the man who opened the door. The bearded man was her father and he led her into the messy living room of their house. He shut off the TV and sat down on the couch. He motioned for her to sit as well.  
  
"I'll stand."  
  
"Look, Amara. I don't know why you've been avoiding your mother and I lately. Maybe you think that now that you're in college you don't need us. But--"  
  
"I've only been 'avoiding' you because I can't stand you or mom!" she shouted. "You two never pay attention to me until you realize I'm not moping because you aren't!"  
  
"We do so!"  
  
"You didn't even come to my Karate tournament last week!"  
  
"Like I told you, we were golfing and--"  
  
"Oooh, you were golfing!" snapped Amara back. "You couldn't have missed that for one day to come see me!"  
  
"Don't talk back to me, young lady!" growled her father. He got up from the couch.  
  
(If Amara keeps contradicting me in my own house, I'm going to have to smack the stupid girl until she realizes I am the boss here!)  
  
Amara's eyes widened and swelled with tears as she intercepted that mental thought.  
  
"You aren't going to hit me! EVER AGAIN!!!" she screamed.  
  
She turned and whipped the front door open as hard as she could and it smashed off of its' hinges when it connected with the wall. She ran out of her father's house and down the street in no particular direction. It had been snowing for quite some time now and she slipped on some black ice on the sidewalk.  
  
"Ouch! Shit!" she cursed. She leaned over and massaged her leg, which had collided hard with the cement underneath her. "I swear I'm going crazy... I'm... I'm..."  
  
(Telepathic.) said a voice in her head. She looked around and gasped.  
  
(Who said that?!)  
  
(Someone who understands you. Amara, I've been sent to give you a new direction in life... and to help you with your new gift.)  
  
(Who... where are you...?)  
  
Amara looked around and brushed some snow out of her hair as she stood up carefully. In her hand she felt a tingling sensation as it began to glow.  
  
"What is... going on...!?"  
  
A Black D-Volver appeared in her hand, surprising the hell out of her. There was another glow near her feet and she checked around to make sure no one was staring at her. Thankfully no one was driving in these parts of town so late at night.  
  
A small creature appeared next to her. It's skin looked like it was made of white crystals, and it had ears and a tail like a cat, yet stood on two legs. It was about as tall as her waist and looked up at her with its big eyes, which were the only part of it that wasn't made of the white crystal. It didn't even appear to have a mouth. Amara stared back at it in shock.  
  
(I'm Crystalmon. Your Digimon partner. Don't move Amara, for I have alot of information to relay to you.)  
  
(Uhm... kay...)  
  
- - -  
  
Only a few blocks away was Lee's house. He lived there with two other boys who helped him pay the rent... but they weren't home at the moment. It had two floors, and the top floor had all the bedrooms. Lee was in his, talking on the phone.  
  
"So how's your job at the radio station?" asked Lee, laying back on his double-bed. The voice on the other end of the phone belonged to Alison: his girlfriend.  
  
"It's awesome! Today I got to meet Jim Chandler!"  
  
"That electric guitar superstar?"  
  
"Yeah!" replied Alison, obviously more enthusiastic than Lee was. Ali loved music and Lee hated how she was already in a career and he was stuck working in a stupid winery. But he'd loved her ever since they were kids, so he let it slide.  
  
"That's awesome, Ali! I didn't see you at school today..."  
  
"Yeah. You know, I overslept." she replied. "I don't think I'll be there tomorrow, I've got a busy night tonight."  
  
"Oh." replied Lee, less than enthusiastic about that. He hadn't been seeing much of Allison lately and he was beginning to wonder if something was up. "Ali, I was wondering--"  
  
Lee was cut off as he heard a familiar beeping noise... one he hadn't heard for a long time. He stared across his room at a pile of junk. One of the objects on the pile of junk... was his old D-Volver. And it was going nuts!  
  
"Wondering what?" asked Ali, curious.  
  
"I'll... uhm, call you tomorrow. I've got a busy night too."  
  
"Lee, what--"  
  
Lee slammed the phone down and ran over to his D-Volver. He picked it up and looked at the tiny LCD screen on it. On it formed a little LCD picture of his partner: Kokuwamon!  
  
"Kokuwamon?! What the-- I can see you!" he exclaimed, excited. "I haven't seen you for so long!"  
  
"Lee! There's trouble!" replied Kokuwamon's voice, crackling out of the speaker on the D-Volver. "Someone is tampering with Trinity Server again! And that someone is from yours!"  
  
"It can't be Desiree again!" protested Lee, angry that their reunion was cut short by such unpleasant news. "She moved! And reformed!"  
  
"No... this time there's four of them!" informed Kokuwamon to him. "Some bad energy was detected in your area and I picked it up! That's why I'm alerting you!"  
  
Ace ran out into the hallway and saw Ace and Nathan's D-Volvers going nuts as well, but no one was answering. He looked back down at his own.  
  
"Show me where!"  
  
"Just follow my instructions!"  
  
Lee made a mad dash out of his house as he struggled to fit his black jacket on. He slid on some ice but regained his footing and continued running like a maniac. It had been a long time since the servers crossed over and this time he was going to fix the problem before it got out of hand.  
  
(This can't be anything like the Shadow incident! It just can't be!)  
  
"Lee, turn into this alleyway! It's in here!"  
  
Lee did as told and slowed to a walk as he entered the alleyway. He looked around but saw nothing but the sides of buildings and a few dumpsters. He kept walking.  
  
"I just know it. I'm going to see a Shadow or some possessed Chosen or some crazy wild Digimon or... Amara?!"  
  
Lee stopped in his tracks as he saw his female friend standing across the alley from him, a look of despair on her face. He looked around to make sure nothing else was there and then faced her.  
  
"Amara! What is going on!? Are you alright?!"  
  
"Everything is fine, Lee." she said to him, calmly. "You came just like she said you would."  
  
"She who!?"  
  
(Me.)  
  
Lee heard a voice in his head and Crystalmon walked out in front of Amara and faced Lee.  
  
"That's her!" said Kokuwamon, still watching from the LCD screen on Lee's D-Volver. "That's one of the Dark Digimon that escaped to your world!"  
  
"Amara, get away from that Digimon!" shouted Lee. "I have to destroy it!"  
  
Lee held up his D-Volver and from it emerged a rainbow of energy, illuminating the dark alleyway for a second. When it faded, Kokuwamon was standing in front of Lee. The metallic beetle snapped his claws menacingly.  
  
"Hmmm. Snow." observed Kokuwamon. "Hope I don't rust."  
  
"Amara! Get away now!" pleaded Lee, concerned for her safety. "You're not well!"  
  
(Oh Lee, I'm perfectly fine.) thought Amara, projecting her thoughts into his head. (I've been blessed with telepathy as Crystalmon here told me.)  
  
"Telepathy?! That's not natural, Amara! I think someone has been screwing with your system!" growled Lee. Kokuwamon nodded.  
  
"I sense strange Digital energy in that girl." said Kokuwamon. "She's not completely human... not anymore. She's been given the same trait as Crystalmon... the ability to read minds."  
  
"But...!" gasped Lee. "Then that would make Amara and Crystalmon partners!"  
  
"Bingo." said Amara, showing Lee her black D-Volver. "And now that we've discovered that wondrous fact, let's have a sparring match like last night. Except this time, our Digimon are going to fight."  
  
(You two will fall.) projected Crystalmon. (The grant to travel to this new world was the promise that I would destroy you, Lee Trainer.)  
  
"That's right. Four Digimon disappeared from Trinity Server recently." informed Kokuwamon.  
  
"WHAT?! So there's going to be four of them!?" exclaimed Lee. "Are the others getting their partners back!?"  
  
"That might not happen. I was barely able to break through the barrier put up by the Guardians to contact you as it is. The others weren't able to make it with me."  
  
(That's right. You're all alone in this, Kokuwamon.) projected Crystalmon. (Now I'm through with listening to you say things I already know! CRYSTAL TEMPEST!!!)  
  
"Oh no..." gasped Kokuwamon. "She's attacking!"  
  
Crystalmon's body began to glow and dozens of pieces of it shot off! The crystal shards were all hurtled at Lee and Kokuwamon. Kokuwamon knocked Lee flat onto the ground and the shards passed harmlessly over them! Kokuwamon then spread his wings and took off into the air!  
  
(Mini Electro Shocker.) thought Crystalmon, predicting what he was going to do next.  
  
"Mini Electro Shocker!!!" screamed Kokuwamon. But by the time he fired the jolt of electricity at Crystalmon, she had already dove out of the way. The crystal cat leapt up onto a fire escape ladder on the side of a building and scurried upwards amazingly fast!  
  
"What the--" gasped Kokuwamon before being tackled in mid-air by Crystalmon! He struggled to maintain his flight as the cat attempted to drag him down!  
  
Lee watched in shock and looked at Amara, who seemed pretty amazed by the whole Digimon-fighting thing.  
  
"Amara! Why are you going along with this!?"  
  
"She's the only one who can possibly ever understand what I'm going through. I can't tell you why but I suddenly feel like this is the right path for me. I want to help my Digimon partner accomplish her mission."  
  
(Yeah, either that or that Yami D-Volver screwed up your head!) thought Lee, looking at the D-Volver Amara was holding.  
  
"I don't think that's it, Lee." she replied.  
  
"Hey, I didn't give you permission to go into my head!" he shouted.  
  
"Mini Electro Shocker!!!"  
  
Lee and Amara looked up to see Kokuwamon attempting to blast Crystalmon again, but she knew he was going to try that and leapt back onto the fire escape ladder.  
  
(Crystal Tempest!!!)  
  
She knew Kokuwamon was planning to dodge to the left, so right before she fired she turned and aimed in that direction! Kokuwamon was struck by the dozens of crystal shards and collapsed to the ground. Lee gasped in shock.  
  
"We've gotta get outta here!" shouted Lee. He ran and scooped up Kokuwamon.  
  
"Running away already?" asked Amara.  
  
"Oh this isn't over, trust me!"  
  
Lee dashed out of the alleyway and made his way home through the gathering blizzard. Amara and Crystalmon stood triumphant, not even bothering to notice the snow.  
  
"Wow, that was amazing, Crystalmon! Are Digimon always that cool?!"  
  
(Yup.)  
  
"I haven't felt so alive in a long time! Thank you, Crystalmon... now I feel like I'm actually capable of something..."  
  
(Something tells me that in your heart you weren't ready to kill Trainer.)  
  
"I... err... well doesn't 'kill' seem a little extreme?"  
  
(We'll see...)  
  
"Alright. Now we gotta get back to my dorm room. We'll just have to pretend you're a stuffed toy."  
  
(What's a stuffed toy?)  
  
"... oh boy." 


	3. Brotherly Battle

No time like the present to change your life. The age range of 18 to 20 is the age where you become an adult and it is a very important age regarding the structure of the man or woman you will be for the rest of your life. Most kids go to college, university, trade school, or something other post-secondary school during this age to prepare themselves.  
  
One boy wasn't making time for that and strolled idly down the slums of Tamur. The boy was about six feet tall, and had red eyes due to the contacts he was wearing. He was wearing jeans and had a black coat on, since the snow didn't make for the most comfortable weather conditions. The wind flowed through his black hair as he walked into a familiar area that he dwelled in.  
  
"Hieshi. What the hell are you doing here?" asked a voice from behind the boy. Hieshi didn't turn, for he knew who lurked behind him. It was the rest of his former gang, the Rippers. There were five men behind him and they looked none too happy to see him. The man who was the leader, who was wearing a bandanna and had a slim mustache, stepped towards Hieshi.  
  
"You ditched us long ago, fool. Now you're gonna pay for coming back onto our turf."  
  
The leader pulled out a switchblade and made the blade pop out. He then walked toward Hieshi menacingly. Hieshi reached into his jacket pocket.  
  
"Boss, watch out! He has a weapon too!" warned one of the guys from behind. But they all looked confused when he pulled out a small black V- shaped device.  
  
"What da heck is that...?" asked the leader. "Your mommy been buying you toys?"  
  
Hieshi simply withdrew another thing from his other jacket pocket, still not even looking at the gang. It was a small rubic cube... but it was all black. The leader lowered his switchblade, not even feeling threatened anymore. He laughed whole-heartedly at Hieshi.  
  
"What the f*ck are you tryin' to pull, boy? If you want to be gay, we'll leave you alone with your little toys."  
  
Then they were all shocked at what happened next. The rubic cube began to glow... and speak!  
  
"Levelermon Shinka..."  
  
The cube changed its shape instantaneously! All the Rippers gasped in horror and took a few steps back, covering their eyes as the blinding light of evolution encompassed the alleyway. When they could see again, the cube had transformed into a giant, black, mechanical dragon! It was nearly as tall as the alleyway and loomed menacingly over the frightened punks.  
  
"... DYACTORALMON!!!"  
  
"Hieshi... what the f*ck are you?!" exclaimed the leader, backing away from the dragon.  
  
"You executioner. Farewell." replied Hieshi, finally speaking. "Dyactoralmon, make them feel pain and anguish unlike anything they've experienced before."  
  
Hieshi didn't even need to watch as Dyactoralmon did away with his foes. He simply turned and kept walking. He could sense other Digimon... and he wanted to know just what was going on.  
  
- - -  
  
Not only is Lee's father the mayor of Tamur, but he's best friends with the son of the richest man in Tamur. James Willington is one of Lee's best friends, and the brown-haired, well-kept boy was traversing his way to his Law class. James wore a black suit with a white undershirt, showing off that he has alot of expensive clothing.  
  
James and Lee used to be worst enemies in high school. They'd beat each other up regularly, with Alison usually being the medium that stopped them from fighting. When Desiree took over James with her Dark Flower, he fought Lee for real but then reformed at the last minute and helped him in his fight against Desiree.  
  
That's all ancient history now, though. There's no way those events can be relevant today... right?  
  
James pushed his way past a few giggling girls and saw his Law class up ahead. He saw Arik and Lee standing in front of the door and they looked up happily when they noticed him.  
  
"Hey Lee, you aren't in this class." said James as he walked up to the two of them. Lee rolled his eyes.  
  
"Very observant, Mr. Moneybags." groaned Lee sarcastically. "I came here to tell you guys that Kokuwamon came back to me yesterday!"  
  
"WHAT?!" exclaimed Arik and James at once. Both boys stared wide-eyed at Lee and it seemed like every other person had left the hallway due to the silence between the three boys. James and Arik each had a Digimon partner of their own previously. Lee continued on.  
  
"Yes... and that's not a good thing. For another group of Chosen appears to be forming. A Dark group. Kokuwamon said four Digimon escaped from Trinity Server and are now choosing partners... in order to destroy those of us with light D-Volvers."  
  
"Do you know who these dark Chosen are?" asked Arik, worriedly. Lee shook his head.  
  
"I had an encounter with one of them last night. But the other four's identities are still a mystery to me. Since Amara is from this school, I'd be willing to bet the next three will be as well."  
  
"We'll keep our eyes peeled." said Arik. "But right now, we got class."  
  
"Alright. I have to go see someone about something." replied Lee, turning and walking off. James put his hands on his hips.  
  
"He comes all the way out here to give us news like that and then just leaves without telling us how to get our partners back." scoffed James, slightly annoyed. Arik shrugged.  
  
"Eh, what are you gonna do?" asked Arik, turning to head into the classroom. James followed him.  
  
"So what are you up to after class?"  
  
"I'm going dirt biking with Nathan. What about you?"  
  
"I have to go home and have dinner with my family." replied James, groaning and taking his seat. Arik sat down next to him.  
  
"Don't like them?"  
  
"They're all way too stuck up. And worse yet, my brother is home from boarding school." sighed James.  
  
"I didn't know you had a brother..."  
  
"Well I don't like to mention him and if you ever meet him, you'll know why."  
  
"Fair enough." replied Arik, reaching for his notes. James bashed his head on the table.  
  
"Today is going to suck." he groaned.  
  
- - -  
  
In the hallway, Lee was heading to go down the stairs to the main floor when someone pushed him from behind! He took a tumble down the short flight of stairs and crashed into the wall at the bottom. Luckily for him, the staircase went down in portions and you had to turn to go a far distance. He looked up to see a very familiar girl standing above him.  
  
Amara walked down the steps toward him, wearing a pink sweater that hugged her form fairly tightly, and also wearing a short black skirt. She simply waved at Lee as she walked by, acting innocent.  
  
Lee groaned and rubbed his arm.  
  
"So I'm a hot bitch am I? I'll take both of those as a compliment." she said to him.  
  
"Quit reading my mind, Amara!" hissed Lee at her. "Do you even know how you got that kind of special power? You need to go see a psychiatrist or something."  
  
Amara jammed her forearm into Lee's throat, pushing him back against the wall. She pressed herself up against him and kissed him on the cheek, then grabbed him by his blonde hair and pulled his head down until his ear was on level with her mouth.  
  
"I'm going to kick your ass one day at a time with my Digimon. And there's no way you can fight us with us predicting your every move." she threatened him. "I don't quite understand this Digimon thing yet, but Crystalmon explained to me that I'm a Yami and you're a Hikari, making us enemies."  
  
"Ugh..." groaned Lee, choking from Amara's arm on his throat, but interested that her breasts were pushed up against him. "This is a strange mixture of pain and pleasure."  
  
Amara whipped him around, sending him tumbling down the next short flight of stairs. She flipped her beautiful dark brown hair behind her shoulder and tugged on her sweater.  
  
"How about we play soccer for a bit?"  
  
Amara went to walk after him, but suddenly started gripping her skull in pain. Lee raised an eyebrow at her as she began to go through convulsions again.  
  
(Hey, someone just pushed that kid down the stairs!)  
  
(Oh man, I got a Biology exam today... I hate learning about plants.)  
  
(I can't believe Dean Rathjen is suspending me for smoking on school property! What a dick!)  
  
(When I get my hands on Ace, he's going to be sorry he didn't go out with me!)  
  
(Oh my god, if Tina tells me that joke one more time... I'm going to slap her...)  
  
"Argh! Shit, I thought I had it under control!" she growled.  
  
"Amara... let me help you..." said Lee softly, walking up the stairs toward her.  
  
"Get away from me!" she screamed, throwing him back down the stairs again. A few kids began to stare at her, so she turned and ran out of the stairwell back to the top floor. Lee groaned and rubbed his aching spots again.  
  
"I need to figure out some way to keep her out of my-- aha!"  
  
Lee got a bright idea, then turned and ran down the stairs, heading somewhere.  
  
- - -  
  
Lunn Dojo:  
  
Lee walked through the white curtain that served as a door to the inner sanctum (aka the training room) or Master Lunn's karate school. He glanced around the room, seeing no one was there. He stepped across the blue training mats that covered the floor until he was in the center of the room.  
  
"Master Lunn?! Are you here?"  
  
"Yes, Lee." said a voice from above. Lee glanced upward to see the 40- year old karate master hanging from his ankles off of a bar on the roof. He jumped back, startled.  
  
"Waaah!"  
  
Lunn dropped off the bar and landed on his hands on the mat. He then flipped backwards, righting himself. Lee looked him over carefully.  
  
"That was crazy! How did you... do that?"  
  
"Concentration, my boy." answered the wise man. "Now why have you come here? There are no classes today."  
  
"I know... but I need you to help me perfect a technique we've been learning. It's really important."  
  
"What might that be?"  
  
Lee's eyes settled on Lunn's face with determination. "How can I clear my mind? While fighting and while not. How do I achieve complete calmness?"  
  
- - -  
  
Later:  
  
James drove in his black convertible up a steep paved road. The brown- haired boy stopped when he came to a gate on the right side of the road. He turned and drove up to it. A security guard on the other side of the gate recognized him immediately.  
  
"Oh, why hello Master James. Come for dinner with the family?" asked the guard with his Spanish accent.. James nodded.  
  
"Unfortunately, Enrique. I wish I could have dinner with you instead."  
  
"Very amusing, Master James." replied Enrique, opening the gate. "Hieshi is back from Boarding school, you know."  
  
"I know." replied James, drolly.  
  
"You know, Master James--"  
  
James angrily drove through the gate, not wanting to hear any more about his brother from Enrique. He parked his car at the top of the driveway and got out. He shut the door and glanced up at the huge marble mansion. Among mansions, it stood out tremendously. It was Willington Manor, where James and Hieshi were raised.  
  
James hated going home. His parents expected too much out of him, and never bothered his brother. Well, that wasn't entirely true... but James was always the one who got forced to do something while Hieshi would win arguments or they would give up. Like with college.  
  
"I got shipped off to college and Hieshi didn't have to. That is so unfair." James reminded himself, remembering why he was mad at his parents in the first place.  
  
James walked into the main hall and a servant took his coat. He walked up the stairs and turned down one of the corridors, knowing exactly where he was going. After passing about six dozen doors, he came to the door of his destination and grabbed the golden handle, opening the door.  
  
"Ah... my old room. Hasn't changed a bit."  
  
James went and lay down on his bed. It was much comfier than the bed in the college dorms. He frowned a little and sat up.  
  
"I gotta get this bed moved to the dorm."  
  
James then noticed that on his bedside table... there lay his D- Volver. He picked up the old gadget and looked it over.  
  
"Oh... this item certainly holds some interesting memories." he said to himself. "Trying to kill Lee... getting killed by Desiree... fighting that freaky BlackOmnimon thingy..."  
  
James threw his D-Volver on the floor, not wanting to touch it again. However, he might just have to...  
  
"Oh sure, dump me on the ground like this!" shouted a voice. It was tiny and electronic, and it sounded more like a hiss... but it was a voice. James almost wet his pants as he stared at the D-Volver.  
  
"Uh... Keramon...?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"WAH! I'm not hearing voices!" exclaimed James, surprised. He ran over to his D-Volver and scooped it up in both hands, looking down at it. And in the LCD screen was a small liquid crystal image of his bug-like partner.  
  
"James!" shouted Keramon. "Good to see ya!"  
  
"Keramon--! I-- what are you-- huh?!"  
  
"You seem a little confused. I've got to tell you something!"  
  
"And that is--"  
  
James was interrupted as the door creaked open behind him. Standing there was black-haired brother, uncomfortably dressed in a tux. Hieshi looked at James like he'd just gone crazy.  
  
"Uh... stupid... you hearing voices or something?" asked Hieshi, referring to James.  
  
James jumped and hid the D-Volver behind his back, shaking his head 'no' rapidly. Hieshi raised an eyebrow at him, then glanced down to what he was hiding behind his back.  
  
"Care to tell me what you got there, dumpface?"  
  
"Just because you're a year older than me, don't mean I gotta listen to you." protested James, still holding the D-Volver behind his back. "And welcome back."  
  
"Shut up." replied Hieshi, politely. "Dinner's ready. Don't be late, or I might have to beat you up... repeatedly... for a week."  
  
Hieshi turned and left, then stopped in his tracks in the middle of the hallway.  
  
"Was James holding a-- nah... couldn't be possible." thought Hieshi, countering his own idea. He patted his dark D-Volver, which he had in his pocket.  
  
"He was. I saw it." replied Levelermon. Hieshi noticed he was holding onto the rubic cube Digimon the entire time, and held Levelermon up to his face.  
  
"Are you sure? My brother is too much of a wuss to have a D-Volver."  
  
"Well it does. And it was a Hikari D-Volver. You know what that means..."  
  
"We must destroy him."  
  
Back in James' room, he pulled the D-Volver out from behind his back and sighed with relief.  
  
"Gee. He's friendly." said Keramon, sarcastically. James nodded, amused.  
  
"So hurry up and tell me what you gotta tell me. I'm late for dinner."  
  
"It can wait." replied Keramon. James nodded and slid the D-Volver into his coat pocket, then headed for the dining hall.  
  
- - -  
  
James arrived in the dining hall and looked at the table. Spread across the white tablecloth were countless different kinds of food, which James loved. His mother and father were each sitting on either of the table, and Hieshi was in the middle on the side far from James. James went and took a seat across from Hieshi.  
  
"Ah, welcome home James." greeted his father.  
  
"Thanks dad." replied James. "Hello mother."  
  
"Hello, son."  
  
James began to put food on his plate as his three family members did the same. There was one of those very long and awkward silences. James's father set his fork down on his plate and leaned in his direction.  
  
"So James, how is school going?" inquired the wealthy man. James's dad had a tiny neatly-trimmed moustache and it matched his black hair. He was wearing a suit, as were James and Hieshi, since their dinners were always formal. Their mother was wearing a white dress.  
  
"College is going okay. My courses aren't very easy, but they aren't very hard either."  
  
"I don't understand why you won't live here at home." butted in his mother, who was upset that James had left. "It's not like we don't have room for you and we love having you around."  
  
"Yeah James. We love you." said Hieshi very sarcastically as he downed some milk. James glared at him.  
  
"Hieshi, at least your brother is going to school. All you do is sit around the house all day and play with your electronics and who knows what else in there." berated his mother.  
  
"All those swords you collect. You know I don't approve of them." said his father. Hieshi rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair.  
  
"I'll do whatever I want." he replied. "I told you I'll take classes next semester if it'll get you off my back."  
  
"Hieshi's gonna fail all his classes like he failed Military school." smirked James. Now it was Hieshi's turn to glare at him.  
  
"Discipline is not my thing. Unlike you, you little whipped--"  
  
"Enough!" shouted their father. "I won't tolerate fighting in my home! Both of you act your age!"  
  
"You don't need to tolerate anything because I'm leaving!" growled James, getting out of his chair. "And mom, I don't live here because I can't stand it here!"  
  
With that James left the room in a hurry, leaving his mother and father dazzled by his outburst. Hieshi got up quickly after.  
  
"Excuse me, but I have to go for a bit. I'll be back before morning."  
  
- - -  
  
James exited the gate in his car, not even bothering to stop and talk to Enrique. He fumed as he gripped the steering wheel and drove along the countryside, making his way back to town. The mansion was quite a ways out of Tamur, so it would take a good half hour of driving to get back to civilization.  
  
"God, that family is so screwed up!" he growled. "Dad expects too much out of me and my brother, and my brother is just a born asshole! Not that I care, but he doesn't even deserve the treatment he gets from my parents!"  
  
"James... who are you talking too?" asked Keramon's electronic voice. James yelped and took one hand off the steering wheel and reached into his coat pocket to find his D-Volver with the LCD picture of Keramon still on it.  
  
"Oh, right. I forgot about you, Keramon. Sorry." apologized James. "I just got a little worked up."  
  
"I'm sure your brother cares about you, James. He just has trouble showing it."  
  
"Yeah, may--"  
  
James was cut off as something smashed into the windshield of his car, shattering it! He screamed and slammed his foot on the brake, stopping the car in the middle of the road. He leapt up and looked at what smashed it.  
  
"A... rubic cube? Alright, that's strange..."  
  
"Not any rubic cube, James. It's my Digimon partner." said a voice from the darkness. James turned his high-beams on to see Hieshi standing in the middle of the road in front of his car. He held up his D-Volver, and it retracted Levelermon like a magnet.  
  
"Your what?!" exclaimed James.  
  
"Don't play dumb with me, James." replied Hieshi. "I saw you talking to your Digimon partner earlier. And interestingly enough, you have a Hikari D-Volver."  
  
James looked down at his D-Volver and noticed it was white, unlike Hieshi's, whose was black. He remembered that Hikari was a fancy word for light.  
  
"So what if I do?"  
  
"Well, Levelermon told me that Yami and Hikari D-Volvers don't get along very well. So therefore, yours must be erased."  
  
"James! If he destroys your D-Volver, I'll be killed!" shrieked Keramon's voice.  
  
"What?!"  
  
"When Digimon partners are chosen, they become linked to both the human and the D-Volver. The D-Volver is like the device that keeps us intact with each other. If it's destroyed, our link is destroyed, and we delete. That's the risk you take when you become linked to a D-Volver."  
  
"You're right." said Hieshi. "Alot of good that does you, though. Brother, I might not harm you if you submit the D-Volver to me right now. Emphasis on might."  
  
James jumped up in his car seat, ready to leap over the broken windshield and fight with his brother, but then his ear picked up something on the radio.  
  
"-- and the gang of hoodlums called the Rippers were found dead earlier today. If anyone has any information about the cause, please phone the police station immediately for a reward. It appears as if they were slashed to death, but there is no wildlife in the area, so that seems unlikely--"  
  
"The Rippers... isn't that your old gang?" asked James.  
  
"Heh heh... the fools never knew what hit them."  
  
James's eyes widened as he looked at his brother.  
  
"You killed them?! Hieshi, do you have any idea how serious that is?! If you get found out, the police will--"  
  
"They'll do nothing! I'm above all the weaklings on this pathetic planet. Watch and learn!"  
  
James looked as Levelermon began to glow. James knew what that was... the light of evolution.  
  
"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!!"  
  
The black mechanical dragon as seen earlier appeared next to Hieshi. He reared his head back and began to charge fire in his mouth.  
  
"Oh shit." cursed James.  
  
James jumped and dove out of his car onto the street. He looked up to see the flame hit his car and cause it to explode.  
  
"Hieshi, you're insane!"  
  
"I hid it pretty good, didn't i?"  
  
Hieshi and Dyactoralmon turned to face James. Dyactoralmon was just waiting for the order to attack again, but Hieshi wasn't giving it yet.  
  
"How the hell did you get a Digimon anyway?" asked James, curiously.  
  
"James, four Digimon escaped from Trinity Server recently!" shouted Keramon's voice. "That's what I was trying to warn you about!"  
  
"Trinity Server. Sure." replied Hieshi.  
  
(What the hell is that? I got my partner when I saw the Shadow invade our world. I was there on the sidelines watching Lee and all the others fight them, and just the sight of them destroyed my sanity! I still manage to keep my head fairly intact... but when it comes down to fighting... sometimes I go a little overboard, as James will soon find out...)  
  
"James, I'm coming!" shouted Keramon.  
  
A light burst out of James's D-Volver, and Keramon materialized in front of him. The net virus Digimon only stood as high as his knee, but Keramon was most definitely physically there again.  
  
(When the Shadow was killed and our server reformatted... I returned to my room, wishing I could have the kind of power I saw Nathan and Desiree have. Then I got it, but not in the way I suspected. A small remnant of the Shadow possessed a rubic cube in my room, making it into a dark Digimon...)  
  
"How could you come back?" asked James, startled. "You said there was a barrier preventing you partners from returning!"  
  
"I'll tell you what happened..."  
  
"Hieshi, shall I kill them now?" asked Dyactoralmon in a deep growl.  
  
"Not yet. I'm interested in what he has to say, and learning about our other enemies aside from James." replied Hieshi. "Whatever we can learn, we can use to kill them."  
  
{{{FLASHBACK}}}  
  
We see a virtual reality world that looks like a lush field and pan up to the sky. But unlike the sky on earth, this sky looks like a virtual grid and a clutter of data that is layered up to a point. That point is the barrier that separates the worlds from each other and four beams of light were heading towards it extremely fast.  
  
In pursuit were seven Digimon. Seven Digimon who have had vast experience in dealing with these sorts of disasters.  
  
Kokuwamon was at the head of them, soaring as fast as he could. He and his companions were surrounded by an orange glow, which was obviously an aura allowing them all to fly as such intense speeds.  
  
Behind him was Keramon, Octopimon (a small purple octopus Digimon), Leila (a Renamon with some clothes on), DemiTyrannomon (a small dark red dinosaur Digimon), Bouncemon (a Digimon whom resembled a small red soccer ball with legs) and Kotemon (a small warrior Digimon in a kendo outfit).  
  
The group of seven Digimon all glanced up at the purplish haze ahead of them as they made their way through the data stream. There was a rip in the fabric of their world caused by some hackers, and the four lights ahead of them were heading right for it.  
  
"I can't believe this! We aren't going to make it!" growled Leila. "How come we can't go any faster?!"  
  
"Hey, half of us can't even fly naturally, so I think it's a blessing we're going this fast!" replied Bouncemon.  
  
"We HAVE to get through!" yelled Kokuwamon from ahead. "If those Digimon escape, Lee and the others will have no way to defend themselves, and they will die!"  
  
"You don't think it's that serious, do you?" asked DemiTyrannomon. "I think--"  
  
"I don't care what any of you think! Just fly!" snarled Kokuwamon, angry that they weren't giving their full attention to the task at hand.  
  
The four lights streamed through the rip and it began to seal up.  
  
"No! They got through!" yelled Leila.  
  
Kokuwamon shot through right as the rip in the barrier sealed itself up. All the other six partners flew straight into it! They were knocked back and dazed, but then gasped as they saw what had happened.  
  
"Ow, my head..." groaned Octopimon.  
  
"We failed... we couldn't make it in time..." sighed Kotemon, disheartened.  
  
"Who knows what's going to happen to Alison and the others now...?" wondered Octopimon.  
  
"But Kokuwamon made it through!" reminded Leila. "At least he can give them a fighting chance. Let's return to the base world and try to figure out another way to get through."  
  
"You know, if you were still the guardian, you could open it up." commented Bouncemon.  
  
"You know, you could shut up." replied Leila.  
  
She, Bouncemon, Octopimon and Kotemon turned and flew back toward the base of the Digital World. DemiTyrannomon and Keramon turned and faced the barrier.  
  
"You a quitter like they are?" asked Keramon.  
  
"Course not." replied DemiTyrannomon. "DEMI BLAST!!!"  
  
"BUG BLASTER!!!"  
  
DemiTyrannomon and Keramon turned and began to fire repeatedly at the part of the barrier that was hacked open with their unique attacks.  
  
{{{END FLASHBACK}}}  
  
"Wow, that worked?" asked James, amazed.  
  
"Not really." replied Keramon. "We shot at it for hours, but then the hackers opened up the rip again... and let the two of us through."  
  
"... why?" asked James, concerned. "That sounds like bad news... why would they let you through?"  
  
"Simple. So they could assess their new Chosen's fighting strength. Like your brothers."  
  
"If Ace and Lee have their partners back, I'm going to signal them." whispered James, pressing the emergency button on his D-Volver. "This would be the second of the four, Lee already met a Yami Chosen named Amara."  
  
(Interesting. So there are people making more Yami D-Volvers like mine. I must seek out this 'Amara'. But first, the task at hand, eradicating this stupid Hikari. Even if he is my brother.)  
  
"Dyactoralmon. Burn them into the cement." ordered Hieshi. Dyactoralmon growled in agreement.  
  
"Oh no." gasped James.  
  
"James, run! I'll hold him off!" shouted Keramon. James turned and dashed out of the middle of the road and glanced around.  
  
"Nice and far out in the country." he said to himself. "Chances are no people will see us fighting up here."  
  
"FLAME CANNON!!" growled the mech dragon, blasting fire at the virus bug. Keramon whirled his flexible body around the attack and launched one of his own.  
  
"Bug Blaster!!!"  
  
Keramon fired three energy shots directly at Dyactoralmon, and all three fizzled out upon hitting his chest.  
  
"Why do you look surprised, Keramon?" asked Dyactoralmon. "I'm an Adult and you're a mere Child. I am FAR stronger than you!"  
  
"Well I've got FAR more experience than you, buddy!" retorted Keramon. "Keramon Shinka..."  
  
Keramon morphed his form until he became a small dark cocoon Digimon with tendrils coming out of his body.  
  
"... KURISARIMON!!!"  
  
Kurisarimon pointed his tendrils menacingly at Dyactoralmon, and he and Hieshi simply laughed. Hieshi seemed to find it especially funny.  
  
"James, THAT is your partner's Adult form?! It's pathetic! Small and weak like you! Dyactoralmon is large and fierce, like me!"  
  
"Size don't matter, bro. Maybe your partner is just compensating for something." taunted James. Hieshi turned and gave him an angry look.  
  
"Screw Kurisarimon, he can't do anything! Blast my mouthy brother and his D-Volver!" ordered Hieshi, rashly.  
  
"What?!" exclaimed James.  
  
Dyactoralmon turned and faced James, who took a few steps back. He tripped over a shrub and fell onto his butt, in no position to avoid the blast!  
  
"With pleasure! FLAME CANNON!!!"  
  
"No, James!" screamed Kurisarimon.  
  
Dyactoralmon launched his attack at James, but suddenly, another dragon Digimon dove down from the darkness and positioned himself in front of James! This dragon looked like a typical black dragon, unlike Dyactoralmon, who was metallic.  
  
"What?! Where did he come from?!" yelled Hieshi. "I couldn't see him in the dark!"  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!" screamed the new dragon Digimon. His blast connected with Dyactoralmon's and they began to go through a power tug-of- war with their attacks.  
  
"Dragonmon!" exclaimed James, happily. He obviously recognized the new Digimon. "Looks like my message went through!"  
  
"Sure as hell did!" shouted another voice. Lee and Ace came flying up on a metallic insect Digimon. The Digimon was TecKuwagamon, Kokuwamon's Adult form. Lee and Ace hopped off of TecKuwagamon's back and ran over to James, helping him up.  
  
"Are you alright?" asked Lee. James nodded.  
  
"We're the only three who have our partners back!" said James to them. They both nodded, knowing that already.  
  
"TECHNO SCISSOR CLAW!!!" screamed TecKuwagamon. They looked up to see him slash Dyactoralmon across the head with his mandibles, sending Dyactoralmon crashing down onto the highway and taking a sizeable chunk out of the pavement. Kurisarimon, Dragonmon and TecKuwagamon all gathered around his fallen body.  
  
"I don't think this mofo will be getting up any time soon." observed TecKuwagamon. Hieshi turned to look at James, along with Ace and Lee.  
  
"So, you're Lee Trainer and Ace Chambers. I'm glad you came to help my brother."  
  
"Why's that?" asked Lee, already not liking Hieshi. "So we can kick your ass three times as hard?"  
  
"No..." replied Hieshi, almost breaking into laughter. "Because now I can kill you all at once!"  
  
As soon as those word escaped Hieshi's mouth, Dyactoralmon's eyes popped open and he stretched his arm out, grabbing Dragonmon by the neck. TecKuwagamon go ready to slash him, but Dyactoralmon put his other hand on Dragonmon's tail and outstretched his body, using him as a shield!  
  
"No, don't attack!" shouted Ace. TecKuwagamon stopped just in time, and backed away from Dyactoralmon.  
  
"Wise council." said Hieshi. "Now I want TecKuwagamon to return to his Child level. NOW."  
  
"... do what he says." growled Lee, reluctantly. TecKuwagamon returned to his small robot beetle form of Kokuwamon. Dragonmon struggled to escape Dyactoralmon's grip, but the robot dragon was just too strong, and Dragonmon was trapped.  
  
"Heh heh. Now give me your D-Volvers. All three of you." said Hieshi, outstretching his hand. "If you don't comply, Dyactoralmon will rip Dragonmon's head off."  
  
"That's just not fair!" shouted Ace.  
  
"Cry me a river, you little pussy. Now all three of you, D-Volvers. Now." ordered Hieshi, sounding very serious.  
  
(These morons don't know that the second I have their D-Volvers, I'll kill Dragonmon anyway and then get Dyactoralmon to stomp the other two.) thought Hieshi.  
  
"I don't think we need to give you our D-Volvers." said James, standing up and staring his brother in the eyes.  
  
"And why not?" asked Hieshi, motioning to Dyactoralmon, who tightened his grip on Dragonmon's neck.  
  
"Because you've forgot about one weak, useless partner. MINE!" yelled James.  
  
Ace, Lee and Hieshi all turned to look at Dyactoralmon and Kurisarimon was hovering behind his head. He extended all his tendrils and jabbed them all into Dyactoralmon's skull, sending dozens of electric shocks into the metallic dragon. He roared out in pain and dropped Dragonmon onto the street. He then fell backwards and reverted to his Child form of Levelermon.  
  
"What?! How?!" exclaimed Hieshi, surprised.  
  
"I told you size don't matter, bro. Now you're in for it!" shouted James, triumphantly. Dragonmon got up and began to charge flame directed at Hieshi, who bit his lip.  
  
"Get back here, Levelermon!" ordered Hieshi, holding out his D-Volver and whipping Levelermon back to him like before. "This isn't over!"  
  
Hieshi turned and leapt over the bank that the highway was on, and all three boys dashed over to see if he killed himself or something.  
  
"Do you see him?" asked Lee.  
  
"He's gone." replied James. "He probably already had some sort of escape route planned."  
  
DemiTyrannomon, Kokuwamon and Keramon ran over to the three boys, who all fell into silence and stared at the city from the view of the countryside.  
  
Lee broke the silence a few moments later.  
  
"We've met two. Amara and Hieshi. There's going to be two more Yami Chosen." he stated. "And without Arik, Alison, Earnest and Nathan able to help us, they'll pretty much have us right where they want us. Outnumbered and outmatched."  
  
"Uhm... Lee." interrupted Kokuwamon, tugging at his leg. Lee, Ace and James looked down at him. "I just wanted to say... that... I've never seen Levelermon before in my life."  
  
"What?!" exclaimed all three boys. They stared at Kokuwamon like he was crazy.  
  
"No, he's right." added Keramon. "Levelermon is not one of the four Digimon who escaped from Trinity Server."  
  
"But then..." gasped Lee, in realization. "There's FIVE of them!"  
  
- - -  
  
Later on, back at Willington manor, Hieshi lay on his bed, looking through his phone book for the Richard Trainer College phone number. Upon success, he dialed it and waited for someone to pick up.  
  
"How is it possible that we lost?" asked Levelermon, who was laying on Hieshi's bed next to him.  
  
"James was lucky. Very lucky. His friends caught us by surprise is all. But I'm going to cover our backs just in case."  
  
Hieshi diverted his attention from Levelermon to the phone when someone picked up the other end.  
  
"Yes, can I please get the dorm room number of Amara Aquilla? I've got a very interesting proposition for her..." 


	4. Obsession

It's harsh when reality kicks in and you realize that things aren't going the way you'd love them too. It's even harsher when you can't even get a grip on reality and you feel your mind is slipping... and slipping... until it's nearly gone.  
  
"... where am I...?"  
  
Amara groaned and opened her eyes, seeing she was in a hospital bed... again. She looked up at the bright light and squinted so she didn't get blinded.  
  
"Ugh... why do I always look right into the light...?"  
  
Amara moved to sit up and found herself straining to do so because her neck hurt. She gasped in pain and rubbed it with her right hand. She looked down and saw she was wearing her white karate uniform, and that the top was sloppily done-up. She fastened it with her other hand and glanced around the hospital room.  
  
"What the hell... I don't remember hurting my neck again..."  
  
There was a knock on the door. Lee's voice came from the other side.  
  
"Amara! You awake?!"  
  
Amara's eyes widened in shock. She tapped her neck and it was definitely hurt. She gripped the fabric of her uniform and it was definitely on her body. And that was definitely Lee's voice.  
  
"This is a familiar scene..." she gasped. "But... it feels so real..."  
  
She glanced around the hospital room some more. There was a plant sitting on the bedside table, and she leaned over, sniffing it. It had a nice fragrance and only served to confuse her more.  
  
(Did I dream the entire thing...? Crystalmon does seem pretty radical... and it's not like me to shove Lee down the stairs like I did 'yesterday'. I must have been hallucinating from when Master Lunn hit me.)  
  
"Yes Lee. Come in."  
  
The blonde-haired boy opened the door gently and peeked in. He looked at the flushed exotic girl and smiled. He stepped in and closed the door behind him.  
  
"Thank god you've regained consciousness. You had us all pretty scared with your outburst earlier."  
  
"My outburst... right..." she said, remembering her mind-reading ability. She concentrated and attempted to read Lee's mind... but got nothing.  
  
(No powers either... what is going on here...?) she thought. (I must have been dreaming. This just seems so much more realistic...)  
  
"I've got your--" began Lee, but stopped as Amara stood up. She stumbled a bit, but managed to regain her footing. She looked down at her bare feet pressing against the cold tiles of the hospital floor. This definitely was reality.  
  
"Whoa, Amara! Are you sure you should be standing? You got a concussion." protested Lee. "At least let me help you walk..."  
  
Lee paced towards her and she attempted to walk towards him, one arm still tending to her injured neck. She slipped and fell forward into his arms. She looked up at him, a look of tranquility on her face. She gazed right into his blue eyes which looked at her with concern.  
  
"I told you not to walk..."  
  
She pressed her hands onto his shoulders and lifted herself upward so that her red lips pressed against his and she began to kiss him. This was what she wanted more than anything in the world... affection. Something she had never had her entire life. Embracing Lee was the best feeling in the world. They had been sparring partners for a long time and she had grown very attached to him over the time.  
  
Lee put his hands on her soft cheeks and gently pulled her face away from his. He smiled at her as she gave him a look of yearning.  
  
"I have a girlfriend, Amara. You know that. You must be really suffering from that concussion... I'm Lee!"  
  
"I know you're Lee... I... lo--"  
  
Amara stopped her sentence as Lee began to fade. She gasped as she fell right through him and landed on the hard floor. Only... the floor was soft... it felt like a bed.  
  
She looked around and saw she was in her dorm room. She gasped, felt her neck and it didn't hurt at all. She then looked down at her crumpled bed sheet in dismay.  
  
"That was the dream..."  
  
(It was no dream, Amara.) projected a small female voice.  
  
Amara looked over the side of her bed to see Crystalmon sitting there. The crystallized cat was grooming herself, pretending to be a real cat just for the fun of it.  
  
"Then... what was it... the pain... the plant... the floor... Lee... they all felt so real..."  
  
(That's the purpose. I used my telepathy to project a dream sequence of my creation into your head. You bought it.)  
  
"You can do that...?" asked Amara, very surprised at this discovery. "It wasn't very nice."  
  
(Relations with the enemy had better not interfere with my-- our quest to destroy him. Lee is the enemy. Never forget that.) the crystal cat reminded her. (Besides... he likes some other girl better than you anyway. He would never give you a second thought.)  
  
"Right..." sighed Amara, disheartened. Crystalmon's ploy to get her to hate Lee was working slowly. She was just going to have to work at it some more.  
  
(Now...) began Crystalmon, hopping onto the bed and wiping a few swelling tears from the beautiful girl's eyes. (Starting today... we're going to work on teaching you how to project dream sequences...)  
  
"... awesome."  
  
- - -  
  
*Beep! Beep! Beep!*  
  
"Unngh... fgnnn..."  
  
*Beep! Beep! Beep!*  
  
*I dun waaannna get up... fugnnn... mrrrr... five more minutes..."  
  
*BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!*  
  
"SHUT UP!!!"  
  
Ace's arm shot out from under his covers instinctively and grabbed the alarm clock. He hurled it across the room and DemiTyrannomon leapt up and caught it. The small dark red dinosaur looked at his partner in disgust.  
  
"Ace! Quit being a slob! You've got your first class at 10:45!"  
  
Ace rubbed his eyes and scratched his messy brown hair, which had been deformed due to having his head buried into a pillow. He noticed he was in a fetal position and stretched out.  
  
"How do you know that...?" he asked, sleepily.  
  
"Lee told me when he left at 10:40."  
  
"Oh, that's nice..." replied Ace, yawning. Then his eyes widened fully. "WHAT?!"  
  
- - -  
  
Ace ran down the stairs and whipped the door open! Lee's car was gone. He already left for school. Ace dropped his Law book on the doorstep and screamed in fury.  
  
"DAMN! SHIT! FUCK! LEE!!!" he screamed. "When I get my hands on him, I'm gonna... uh... I don't know what, but it will be PAINFUL!!!"  
  
Kokuwamon and DemiTyrannomon stood in the doorframe, just staring at Ace. Ace turned and looked at them, then smiled innocently.  
  
"Heh heh. I have to run very very fast now. Good thing I'm on the football team."  
  
"What's football?" asked Kokuwamon. "Should we take your foot off and play a game with it?"  
  
"I'm in!" agreed DemiTyrannomon.  
  
Ace fell over.  
  
"My foot does not detach! But hey, if it ever does for some reason, you two can throw it around as much as you want."  
  
"We're gonna hold ya to that." said Kokuwamon.  
  
"Is that a threat-- oh! Right! Running!" he shouted. He turned and dashed away from the house, clutching his Law book. He turned around and jogged backward for a second to shout at the two Child Digimon.  
  
"Close the door and stay inside and out of sight until Lee, Nathan or I get home! That's an order!"  
  
Ace turned and booked it down the street in the direction of RTC, mumbling more about Lee being a jerk. Kokuwamon and DemiTyrannomon looked at each other.  
  
"We gonna listen to him?" asked Kokuwamon.  
  
"Nah." replied DemiTyrannomon.  
  
"That's what I thought."  
  
- - -  
  
RTC:  
  
"Richard Trainer College. Friendly looking place." said Hieshi, overlooking the campus from the sidewalk across the street from it. He was holding Levelermon in his right hand as he was easy to take around in public, since he only looked like a rubic cube.  
  
"Just try not to start any fights with your brother if you see him." warned Levelermon. "A public reaction to Digimon could be catastrophic and I couldn't take out an entire army of human law enforcers."  
  
"I know, I'm not here on a homicide mission... although I might throw him in a locker." said Hieshi, walking toward the building. After he crossed the street, Lee stopped his car in the middle of the road on his way and he and Nathan glanced at Hieshi.  
  
"Oh no..." gasped Lee. "What's he doing here?"  
  
- - -  
  
"This... is not... happening..." sighed Ace as he tiredly walked his way up the steps leading to the main building of RTC. "I am not 40 minutes late for Law... this is just a bad dream..."  
  
Ace was wearing a black T-shirt with a white stripe on the sleeve, which he was sweating fiercely in. And since it was cold outside, sweating only led to him freezing. Today was not a good day to wear a T-shirt.  
  
"I can make it into a good dream."  
  
Ace recognized the female voice from behind him. It was the one person he despised most in the entire world... well, at least in this school. The voice belonged to Tori Estrada, a girl who was inexplicably and overenthusiastically infatuated with Ace.  
  
Ace turned around and looked at the girl, who had brown hair with blonde highlights. She was wearing tight black pants and a white T-shirt with a string that barely held it closed. She was the definition of a skank as far as most people were concerned. She looked at Ace expectantly and he just rolled his eyes.  
  
"Tori. Go. Away."  
  
Ace turned and headed back for the building, late enough as he was without that psycho bothering him. He felt two slender arms wrap themselves around his chest below his arms and a female body press up against his back.  
  
"Come on, Ace... you know I'm perfect for you."  
  
Ace clenched his eyes tight and shook his head. Hot as she was, he liked someone else and had no time to waste with her. He went to walk again, but she pulled back on him, anchoring him.  
  
"You're way too persistent, Tori. I keep telling you I like someone else!"  
  
Ace pushed her away from him rather roughly and she took offense. This was becoming almost a daily thing that Ace was getting sick of. Tori really liked him and he had no idea why. Frankly, he didn't care. He just wanted her to leave him the hell alone.  
  
"Who, Ace?! Those ditzy cheerleaders that cheer for your football team? They'll never go out with you! You have your standards too high! Like, up in the clouds high."  
  
"Well, you know what Tori?! IF I ever do go out with anyone, it definitely WON'T be you! I hate you! You are so god damn annoying and you dress like a complete slut! If I was ever seen with you, I'd have to kill myself!" snapped Ace. He turned and stormed into the college and Tori stood there, frozen, at a loss for words.  
  
She then glared at the door as it shut behind Ace entering it. She was more angry than she'd ever been in her life.  
  
"You're going to pay for that Ace..."  
  
She heard footsteps behind her and figured it was simply another student, but the footsteps stopped right behind the young 19-year old. She turned and looked to see a man standing behind her. The man was wearing a trenchcoat and appeared to be in his early 40's, still fairly good looking and with short stylish brown hair.  
  
"Who are you...?" asked Tori, stepping away from him. She was a little intimidated by his lurking stance. He stood up straight and removed his hat, bowing to her as if to introduce himself.  
  
"My name is Matt Irvine. I'm a pioneer for justice."  
  
"Yeah, well I don't care what you're selling." she said. She turned to head into RTC. "I've got enough going on in my mind already."  
  
"He's never been that mean to you before, has he?"  
  
Tori stopped in his tracks and spoke again but didn't turn around to look at Irvine.  
  
"How do you know...?"  
  
"I've been studying Mr. Chambers for quite some time. You often show up in my reports as well, being around him."  
  
"So what, you stalk Ace?"  
  
"Not exactly." replied Irvine. "I'm a scientist of sorts and you could say Ace is part of my project. Now, after he has treated you so harshly, how do you feel towards him?"  
  
"I... hate him." said Tori, almost beginning to cry. She felt Irvine put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her.  
  
"Now... what would you say if I offered you the chance to get back at him? To make him suffer?"  
  
"I'd say sign me up."  
  
Irvine grinned, almost evilly.  
  
"Perfect."  
  
- - -  
  
Inside RTC:  
  
Lee peeked around the corner and saw Hieshi exit a door that led to the dorm room area of RTC. Lee turned and tip-toed very quietly, following him. A girl came walking out of the female washroom at that time and saw Lee.  
  
"Hey Lee!!"  
  
"Alison!" exclaimed Lee in surprise. He turned and tackled her, both of them flying back through the door into the washroom. Hieshi turned around and looked, but didn't see anyone there.  
  
"I swear I just heard someone say Lee's name."  
  
"You're hallucinating." replied Levelermon.  
  
"Yeah, maybe."  
  
Hieshi shrugged and kept going in his original direction. In the washroom, Lee pulled himself off Alison and then helped her up off the floor. Alison was wearing a light blue T-shirt and some jeans, also a necklace that Lee had given her. They both gave each other a necklace at their one year anniversary and wore them at all times.  
  
"Lee, the next time you want to get physical with me at school... don't." she said, rubbing her shoulder. "What was THAT about?!"  
  
Lee poked his head back out of the washroom and then wrapped his arm around his girlfriend, pulling her to peek too. He pointed at Hieshi.  
  
"Him."  
  
"Him who?"  
  
"That's one of the new Yami Chosen I told you about last night." Lee informed her. "I was following him and you almost blew my cover."  
  
"Well sorry if I haven't seen you for like a week." she scoffed. "Our schoolwork keeps us too bu-- wah!"  
  
"Come on!" he whispered, dashing out of the bathroom and pulling her along with him by her arm. Hieshi had entered the dorm area and Lee ran up to the door. He opened it a crack and saw Hieshi going up the stairs to the next floor.  
  
"Lee, come on. Why does it matter if he's at our school?" she protested, pulling his hand off her arm and rubbing it.  
  
"Cuz he doesn't go here. This one is James's brother and he tried to kill James, Ace and myself last night. He's very ruthless."  
  
"So why do you wanna follow him?"  
  
"Because if he's up to no good, I'm gonna run up behind him and choke him until he passes out."  
  
Ali raised an eyebrow at Lee.  
  
"He's bigger than you! He'll kick your ass!"  
  
"Oh thanks alot, woman." groaned Lee. "You kick him in the balls then."  
  
Ali sighed and followed Lee, who dashed through the doors and up the staircase that Hieshi traversed earlier. It's not like she hadn't seen him do crazier things.  
  
"All we have to do is shatter his D-Volver." Lee told her. "Then that nightmare will be over."  
  
"If you say so... then can I go back to computer class?"  
  
"No. Then we're going up to your dorm room."  
  
"Alright..." she agreed, dejectedly. "Wait-- don't you have a class?"  
  
- - -  
  
In Amara's dorm room, she was laying on her bed and listening to music while reading a book she had bought. The book was about mutants who had gained special powers and one of them had telepathy.  
  
"Story of my life..." she grumbled.  
  
Suddenly she heard a knock on the door. She and Crystalmon both looked up at once.  
  
"Hide." said Amara. The crystal cat did as told and dove underneath Amara's bed. Amara noticed she wasn't even dressed and only in her underwear, so she grabbed a silver robe and threw it on. She walked over and opened the door.  
  
"Hello. Are you Amara Aquilla?" asked the boy on the other side of the door. She looked at the black-haired boy and didn't recognize him at all.  
  
"Who the hell are you?"  
  
"My name is Hieshi. And I'm just like you." he said, getting right to the point. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his black D-Volver. Amara gasped when she saw it. It definitely was one of the Yami D-Volvers.  
  
"You're not like me." she said. "I got something else along with my Yami D-Volver."  
  
"What?" he asked.  
  
"Well, I can tell you that your name is Hieshi Willington, you're 20, you live at Willington Manor up in the country and currently aren't going to school. Your partner's name is Levelermon and you're holding him in your left hand right now and if I don't agree to go along with you, you're going to make him attack me."  
  
Hieshi's eyes widened in amazement as Amara blurted out that paragraph about him. As he was about to say something, she continued on.  
  
"What you want me to do is ally with you to kill Lee and his friends, but after that you would have no use for me anymore and you'd kill me too. Why? Because you want to be the only one with a D-Volver because you feel insecure that other people have the same sort of power as you. You want to be the only one. You want to be special."  
  
"H-how did you--" stammered Hieshi.  
  
"I have no reason to ally myself with you, Hieshi. Don't bother me again."  
  
Amara slammed the door in his face. Hieshi stood there, staring at it. He was still totally stunned.  
  
"She's a telepath." Levelermon told him. "But that's strange... how can a human girl be a telepath...? I've only heard of Digimon telepaths..."  
  
"I don't even want to know." he sighed. "Let's get out of here, this was a big waste of time."  
  
Lee and Ali were just coming up the stairs as Hieshi moved to go down them. He smirked when he saw Lee.  
  
"What are you doing here?" asked Lee, acting like he'd just bumped in Hieshi by accident.  
  
"Just passing through." replied Hieshi. "Nice day."  
  
Hieshi walked past him and headed down the stairs. Lee scratched his head and Ali poked him in the temple.  
  
"Yeah, he was definitely up to no good, Lee. Look how menacing he is." said Ali sarcastically.  
  
"I hate it when you're right." sighed Lee.  
  
- - -  
  
Later that night, Ace was heading home from school just as night settled in. Ace had borrowed a jacket from Arik, which was good for him since it was freezing out. Since he had to walk, the brown-haired boy decided to pull a few shortcuts that he knew.  
  
(Oh man... it is FREEZING out...) thought Ace, desperately rubbing his arms in a vein attempt to warm himself up. (Arik's jacket isn't helping at all... and neither is this snow...)  
  
Snow was falling at an accelerated rate and it had to have been the coldest day of the year so far. Ace tried to climb over a fence to take a shortcut back home that led through a parking lot to some appliance store. The metal on the chain link fence froze his fingers so much that it almost burned, but he bared it and climbed to the top...  
  
... then he felt something hit him from behind and knock him forward off the fence and into the parking lot. Ace slammed into the snow and bashed his head on the cement!  
  
"Ugh... ow..." he groaned. He felt his head and the sticky feeling of blood was present on his fingers. He tried to push himself off the ground but someone landed on his back!  
  
"Aagh! he screamed.  
  
"Hello Ace." said an all-too familiar voice.  
  
"Tori--?! What the--"  
  
Tori leapt off his back and kicked him in the ribs, sending him barreling through the snow and sliding across the sheet of ice on the parking lot. Holding the gash on the side of his head and attempting to ignore the freezing sensation all over his body, Ace struggled to stand up.  
  
"What the hell are you doing, Tori...?" asked Ace, weakly.  
  
"I've been re-educated." she replied, coldly.  
  
Tori was clothed in a winter parka and jeans, so she was definitely warmer than Ace. Her brown hair with blonde highlights was covered by a toque she was wearing to protect her head from the cold. She held out a Yami D-Volver and showed it to Ace, who could barely see it in the dim light that was given off only by the moon.  
  
"A D-Volver... how...?"  
  
"And now meet my partner." she said. "Kazemon!"  
  
A Digimon leapt off the rooftop of the appliance store and landed next to Tori. The female Digimon stood about 3 inches taller than Tori, and was wearing a visor over her eyes. She had large wings that almost looked like they belonged to a butterfly and she looked at Ace.  
  
"Tori... come on... don't--"  
  
"Kazemon. He told us it is our mission to destroy Ace. So destroy him." she ordered, ignoring Ace's plea.  
  
"HURRICANE GALE!!!" screamed Kazemon. The female fairy blasted a cyclone from her hands directly at Ace and he was thrown back, smashing his back into the wall of the appliance store. He screamed out in pain and fell to his knees on the pavement. This kind of beating was going to kill him.  
  
"Tori, come on! Don't do this!" he shouted. "I'm bleeding from my head... I need to go to a hospital!"  
  
He looked up but couldn't even see Tori or Kazemon anymore thanks to the thick blanket of snow. Suddenly, he felt Kazemon grab him by his left arm and hoist him into the air. He was hurled again, this time landing on his shoulder in the middle of the parking lot.  
  
He didn't try to get up this time and just lay in the snow. He had no sensation in his body anymore thanks to the cold, although he knew blood was leaking from the gash on his head and his shoulder. He lay there, face- down in the snow, unable to move. He heard footsteps in front of him.  
  
"Perhaps now you'll think about who you mess with." said Tori. "Because you never know when they're going to be handed a D-Volver and a powerful Digimon."  
  
(Why is she being so EVIL? It must be the Yami D-Volvers... they must warp a person's personality. That's what Lee said happened to Amara... ugh... but I have no strength anymore... I would if it wasn't so cold... no... I'm going to die here... aren't I...?)  
  
Kazemon put her foot on his back, pressing him into the ground.  
  
"All she has to do is stomp your spinal cord and it's over. And then your Hikari D-Volver will fade along with you, strengthening him. He told me all about Digimon, and the power I will achieve by helping him."  
  
(He...? Who is... he...?) thought Ace, not even able to move his mouth to talk. He couldn't even feel Kazemon's foot on his back anymore. (I wonder what dying feels like if you're frozen...?)  
  
"DEMI BLAST!!!"  
  
"MINI-ELECTRO SHOCKER!!!"  
  
Fire and electricity crashed into Kazemon's side, sending the nimble fairy flying. She didn't go far though and landed on her feet. Tori looked up in the direction of the blasts. Ace couldn't look because he couldn't move, but he could hear them.  
  
(No way...)  
  
"Ace!!!" screamed DemiTyrannomon, running over to him. "Are you okay?! Speak!!!"  
  
"Ugh. Where did these two come from?" asked Tori, disgusted.  
  
"They are Child level." Kazemon told her. "I can handle them with ease."  
  
"Handle THIS, you skank!" screamed Kokuwamon, flying straight at her. The metal beetle body-slammed Kazemon right in the chest and she leaned back with the attack. She then removed her feet from the ground and shifted her body weight up so as to kick Kokuwamon in the rear.  
  
Kokuwamon went flying forward, but hit the wall of the appliance store and rebounded himself back at Kazemon through the snowstorm with tremendous force! He body-checked her again, this time sending her crashing right through the fence!  
  
"Oh!" gasped Tori. "You little bastard!"  
  
Tori ran over and kicked Kokuwamon, knocking him down onto the ground and out. DemiTyrannomon was pushing Ace still, attempting to wake him, but he wasn't moving.  
  
"Kazemon, I took care of this one! Finish Ace off now!"  
  
Kazemon leapt up and climbed back through the hole in the fence she was knocked through. She then made her way back over to Ace.  
  
"Oh no you don't!" screamed DemiTyrannomon, defiantly. "Demi Blast!!!"  
  
DemiTyrannomon hurled fireballs at Kazemon, who simply slapped them away. She then kicked DemiTyrannomon aside. Right when she was about to finish Ace off again, his D-Volver began to glow with a warming light.  
  
"What now?!" exclaimed Tori.  
  
Ace felt strength come back into him as his whole body warmed up. He got up off the ground, one hand holding the gash on his head. His other arm was outstretched, holding his D-Volver.  
  
"Picking on Child Digimon?" asked Ace to Tori. "Well, let's see how you handle a REAL Digimon battle! DemiTyrannomon!!!"  
  
"Right!" agreed DemiTyrannomon. He leapt up out of the snow and began to glow. The snow melted around him as he began to change shape.  
  
"DemiTyrannomon Shinka... DRAGONMON!!!"  
  
Dragonmon roared out as he appeared and landed on the ground of the parking lot. He was almost as big as the appliance store and hunched his neck over to get a good look at Kazemon. Tori was absolutely stunned by this evolution.  
  
"Wow, so he was right... you have a Digimon too, Ace..."  
  
Ace stepped away from Kazemon and picked up Kokuwamon, getting the two of them out of the way of the battlefield. Tori saw this and followed his example, heading over to the chain-link fence she kicked Ace over in the beginning.  
  
The black dragon began to charge fire in his mouth and aimed it directly at Kazemon, who bit her lip.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!" he screamed, pouring it in her direction. She flapped her wings and leapt backward with an aerial boost, clearing the blast. He continued to pour it on and aimed it directly at her and she was forced to dodge again.  
  
This time she took to the air and soared majestically in circles around Dragonmon's wave of fire. She flew right up to his head and stretched her foot back.  
  
"HURRICANE KICK!!!" she belted out, bashing him across the head with her foot. Dragonmon snarled in pain and was knocked onto his side. Kazemon then saw this as an opportunity to finish him of and dove right down for the dragon's stomach. She was going to smash her foot into his stomach.  
  
But he was ready for her and smacked her aside with his tail. The fairy yelped and was flung through mid-air... and just as she flew over were Dragonmon's head lay, he snapped back into action and pointed his mouth upward.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!"  
  
Kazemon was hit dead-on by the blast, engulfed by it as it screamed through the sky and up into the clouds. When Dragonmon closed his mouth, the fire stopped and a Salamon crumpled to the ground, unconscious.  
  
"Oh no!" shrieked Tori. She held out her D-Volver and it pulled Salamon to it, much like Hieshi did with Levelermon the night before. She tucked her partner under her arm and hopped the fence, making a break for it down the street.  
  
Dragonmon reverted to his Child state of DemiTyrannomon and ran over to Ace, who was smiling and still holding the unconscious Kokuwamon.  
  
"How did you know where I was?" asked Ace, curious.  
  
"You said not to leave the house. But like we'd listen to you." answered DemiTyrannomon. Ace smiled and went to pat his partner on the head, but then felt woozy from bleeding too much.  
  
"Ugh... let's go to a payphone and call Lee... I need to get to a hospital... and it's FREEZING out here!" he said. "Plus, with that big pillar of fire, someone is bound to come check out this area soon. We don't wanna be found here."  
  
Ace and DemiTyrannomon headed to the hole in the fence and stepped through it.  
  
"Ace... do you know that girl?"  
  
"Yeah." he replied, softly. "And she's a good example... that maybe if I hadn't been so mean to her... she might not have been pulled into this mess... but now she is. And we've still got two more Yami Chosen out there that we haven't met yet... somewhere."  
  
"We'll be ready for them." said DemiTyrannomon. "Us, Lee and James, we'll mop the floor with 'em!"  
  
Ace and DemiTyrannomon walked down the street in search of a payphone and one man was leaning up against the corner of the appliance store, having witnessed the entire incident. It was Irvine, the man from earlier.  
  
"How foolish can these children be?" he asked himself. "I could kill him right now..."  
  
Irvine leveled a gun at Ace's head, but then slid it back into his coat pocket.  
  
"But it wouldn't help me. To break Trinity Server's barrier completely, light must be killed by darkness. Yami over Hikari. It is the only way. And I still have to corrupt two more children. I wonder if my three associates have anyone in mind..."  
  
Irvine put his hands in his pockets and turned away from Ace, walking down the street in the other direction. 


	5. Insanity

"I told you, Vince, I'll pay back the money tomorrow!"  
  
"Tomorrow isn't good enough, Jason. We need the money NOW. You've been putting this off for too long... and you know how I feel about that."  
  
"Look, I don't have it right now... okay? Just give me one more day..." replied Jason. The 25-year old glanced at his cell phone as it suddenly went to static. "Hello? Hello?!"  
  
"Jason, watch the road!" shouted his little brother Ray. Jason remembered he was driving and turned back onto the road. It was hard to see in these horrible snowy conditions at night. Ray looked at his big brother with concern. The 18-year old had brown hair and was wearing a black t- shirt along with black jeans and he was sitting in the passenger seat.  
  
"Look, if you need money... I can lend you some..."  
  
"Do you have 2000 dollars, Ray?" asked Jason, skeptically. "Just don't get involved in my business. It's not a good business."  
  
"Then why don't you stop it?"  
  
"I would but the boss is so totally on edge since five of our Rippers members got killed the other night! And I don't blame him. It's scary to think that someone is after us."  
  
"THEY'RE going to be after you if you don't pay them the 2000 dollars back." Ray reminded him.  
  
"Alright alright. I'll ask mom and dad for the money."  
  
Jason figured that ended the conversation and turned back to driving. It wasn't going to be easy to ask his parents for money, but he had no other choice.  
  
(I wonder if Jason is really going to pay back the debt...) thought Ray. His brother was the most important person in the world to him and he couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to him.  
  
Unfortunately... things don't always go ask you want them to...  
  
"What was that?!" exclaimed Jason.  
  
"Sounded like a gunshot!"  
  
Suddenly the windshield shattered and before Ray knew it, the car spun out of control and slid along the icy road, smashing right through the side of a building! Ray regained awareness and stopped gripping the seat for dear life when the car stopped. Thank god for seatbelts. The front was totaled, he could see that from where he was.  
  
"Jason, that was really scary..." gasped Ray. "Are you alright?"  
  
. . .  
  
"Jason?"  
  
Ray looked over at the driver's seat and remembered his brother was not wearing a seatbelt. He was no longer in the driver's seat.  
  
"Oh my god... no..." gasped Ray. "No!!!"  
  
Heroes & Villains, Chapter Four: Insanity  
  
A taxi pulled up in front of Ace, Nathan and Lee's house roughly at 11 PM. Ace climbed out of the back seat and paid the driver his fare, thanking him for the ride. Kokuwamon and DemiTyrannomon hopped out of the door too, having been hiding on the floor of the cab. The cab drove off and the three of them turned to head inside.  
  
"That was not an eventful night." groaned Ace, poking at the huge bandage on the side of his head where the huge gash Tori gave him was.  
  
"What are you talking about?" asked Kokuwamon. "I got to tackle Kazemon, man was she hot!"  
  
"I never really got to look." sighed Ace. "I was eating snow."  
  
Ace opened the door and Nathan looked up from the couch on the living room, where he was watching TV. He raised an eyebrow at Ace, who waved at him.  
  
"You look like crap."  
  
"Nice to see you too." replied Ace.  
  
"What the hell happened?!" asked Nathan, getting up off the couch.  
  
Nathan had short, spiky black hair and was clad in black all the way through his body as well. But Nathan was... different than most people. You see, back in the Shadow incident last year, he was possessed by the Shadow. Ace and Lee eventually broke him free of it... but he got a side-effect from that.  
  
He had black irises now, his eyes almost all black. It was somewhat of an attention-grabber wherever he went. Nathan was totally ashamed of it and cut himself off from most of society... aside from his Chosen friends that is. Even his parents thought he was a freak.  
  
"OH nothing..." groaned Ace, going into the fridge and drinking some milk right from the carton. "Just had a little run-in with one of the YAMI CHOSEN!!!"  
  
"Another one?" asked Nathan. "How many is that now?"  
  
"Three so far. Two to go." answered Ace, taking the milk carton and putting it on his shoulder to cool the wound he had there. "Where's Lee?"  
  
"Upstairs in his room, but he's--"  
  
Before Nathan could finish, Ace was already dashing upstairs to tell Lee about the night. Nathan laughed to himself for a minute and then returned to the couch.  
  
"Lee, guess what--" began Ace, swinging open his door. "-- AHH!"  
  
"AHH!!!" screamed Ali and Lee from inside the room.  
  
Ace slammed the door shut and leaned back up against it, startled.  
  
"I didn't see nothing!" shouted Ace, clenching his eyes shut.  
  
"That's the seventh time you've said that!!" yelled Ali back from the other side of the door.  
  
"Well, GET A ROOM!!!" screamed Ace.  
  
"WE'RE IN A ROOM!!!" screamed Lee back.  
  
"Right... doy..." groaned Ace. He stumbled into his room and fell onto his bed, passing into deep sleep almost immediately. Kokuwamon and DemiTyrannomon watched him from the doorframe.  
  
"Aww, ain't he cute?" asked Kokuwamon, sarcastically.  
  
"Yeah... let's put white glue in his nose."  
  
"Okay!"  
  
- - -  
  
The next day, Ace and Nathan's PE class was all gathered on the field behind RTC. They were all listening to Coach Wilson talk to them. Coach Wilson was a rather muscular man, and had neatly cut light brown hair. He was a very sarcastic and easygoing guy.  
  
"Alright, PE students, listen up!" he shouted at the class of around forty students. "Today you've got your choice of soccer or basketball! But remember, early next week we're going on a hiking trip! It's going to test your strength and endurance in this cold, so I want all of you to be damn well prepared for it!"  
  
"Yes sir!" echoed the PE class back, all freezing.  
  
They then split up into two groups. Ace and Nathan went inside to go play basketball and saw Amara and Tori were in there, competing against each other. Amara was working Tori over, since she was alot more athletic.  
  
"Dude..." whispered Ace, poking Nathan. "Those two is Yami Chosen."  
  
"Whaaat? You mean Tori is a Yami Chosen? Prove it." said Nathan.  
  
"Okay." replied Ace. He then waved his hand in the air in Tori's direction. "HI TORI!!!"  
  
Tori flipped him off and then turned back to playing basketball with Amara. Nathan raised an eyebrow at Ace, since that is not how Tori would have treated him yesterday.  
  
"She loves you." he said. Ace nodded in agreement.  
  
"I don't think Amara and Tori know each other are Yami Chosen though. Which is a good thing I think." said Ace. "Hey, look at Ray. Why's he not doing anything?"  
  
Ray was in his PE shorts and just sitting on the bench next to the basketball court, with his head buried in his lap. Nathan and Ace looked at each other and walked over to him.  
  
"Hey Ray! You love basketball!" shouted Ace. "Why aren't ya playing?!"  
  
Ray didn't respond. He just sat there with his head buried in his lap.  
  
"Earth to Ray?" asked Nathan, skeptically. "Come on. I'll play ya. First person to score wins."  
  
Ray simply got up and left the class, still keeping his head bowed to the floor. Ace and Nathan stood there, wondering what the hell was up with him. Suddenly, someone grabbed both of them by their shoulders and shook them.  
  
"Why aren't you two slackers doing anything?!"  
  
"Sorry Coach Wilson, but uh... Ray just left class." replied Nathan.  
  
"Oh yeah? I'll go talk to him." said Coach Wilson, heading off in the direction Ray went. "You two play Amara and Tori!"  
  
They looked at Amara and Tori, who looked back at them. Amara walked over to the two of them. The dark-brown haired girl was wearing a simple white T-shirt that said 'RTC' on it, as well as green shorts. In fact, so were Tori, Nathan, Ace, and everyone else in the PE class.  
  
"Don't you two live with Lee Trainer?" asked Amara, put her hands on her hips and giving the boys a look of innocence.  
  
"No." replied Ace, knowing who she was.  
  
Amara concentrated for a second, shutting her eyes. Then she opened then and looked back at Ace and Nathan, smiling sweetly.  
  
"You guys live on 316 Maple Street. Thanks." she said sweetly, turning away from them. Nathan and Ace just stared at her.  
  
"How did she do that?" asked Nathan.  
  
"I've got no-- oof!" grunted Ace as a basketball hit him at lightning speed in the stomach and knocked him backwards onto the cement of the court floor.  
  
"Heads up!" shouted Tori, between laughing. Nathan sweat-dropped.  
  
"We've got some hot, crafty foes there." said Nathan, then he sighed. "I just wish I had my partner back..."  
  
- - -  
  
Ray was standing just inside the school, staring at one of the bulletin boards on the white-painted wall. He wasn't really reading them, he was just in a state of mourning. He still couldn't believe his brother-- his best friend... was gone.  
  
"Ray, my boy, what's troubling ya?" asked Coach Wilson, opening the door and walking into the school. Ray didn't answer. Coach Wilson looked him over and frowned a little bit.  
  
"Ray... is something serious wrong...?"  
  
"I'd like to be excused from class, Coach. If that's alright with you." he said, finally deciding to talk. Ray's voice was cracked and all his words didn't come out right.  
  
"Sure Ray... just make sure to come on the camping trip. I want all my boys there!" he said, putting his arm around Ray and giving him a noogie. Ray barely stifled a laugh, even though he wanted to laugh.  
  
"I'll come."  
  
"That's the spirit, Ray! You go back to your dorm room and sleep off whatever's ailing ya!"  
  
Coach Wilson left Ray and exited the building to return to the PE class. Ray sighed and looked at the floor again. The brownish tiles did not match the white floor. He heard footsteps and looked over to see Dean Rathjen walk up next to him and look at the bulletin board from behind his small bifocals.  
  
"A camping trip, huh Ray?" he asked, looking at the poster for it. "That sounds like fun."  
  
"Nothing will be fun ever again." growled Ray, dejectedly. Rathjen gave him a look of worry.  
  
"What is with that attitude? This college is about spirit!"  
  
"My brother... died... last night..." sighed Ray. "I... I don't know how I'm going to live without him..."  
  
"Well Ray, that is unfortunate. But some things are destined to happen. Perhaps his fate was to lead you down a new path..."  
  
"What do you mean?" asked Ray, looking for any array of hope to make his life better.  
  
"Come with me Ray... and I'll open your eyes and let you look at the world in a way you never dreamed possible..."  
  
Rathjen turned and walked down through the brightly lit hallway towards his office. He looked behind him and saw Ray slowly start to follow. Rathjen smiled and continued on.  
  
- - -  
  
Later that day, Ace and Nathan were walking back from school, seeing as how Lee wouldn't give Ace a ride for walking in on him and Alison last night. And Nathan, being the good friend that he is, walked with Ace. Today Ace was smart and was wearing a black winter coat, as was Nathan.  
  
"Black is definitely our color." said Nathan, looking around nervously. He was hoping no one was staring at his eyes and thankfully, people had better things to do.  
  
"Who cares if people stare at you. You're better than them." Ace reminded him, noticing Nathan's nervous glance. "They don't know the truth behind it."  
  
"Yeah and they can't." said Nathan. "We were lucky all the people's minds got erased after the last Digimon incident. Just our luck for it to happen again..."  
  
"It won't happen." replied Ace, determined. "It just... can't happen. Imagine what people would do if they found out about our partners... they'd be dissected or something. And for all the damage we cause during our fights! We'd be put into jail..."  
  
"Just get Dragonmon to roast em."  
  
"Oh yeah, like anything is that simple." sighed Ace. "After what happened to Tori nothing is simple..."  
  
"Why do you feel responsible for that?" asked Nathan. "It's not like it's your fault she submitted herself to become a Yami."  
  
"I still feel responsible..." sighed Ace. He then decided it was time to change the subject. "Hey, there's the construction site for the new Mega movieplex."  
  
"Wanna go check it out?" asked Nathan.  
  
"Hell yes!"  
  
That particular construction site was run by the head boss of the Rippers: Vincent Vance. He and his crew were building the Gogoplex as part of community service they were sentenced too, while keeping their gang activity under wraps for the time being.  
  
Ray approached the Gogoplex, carrying a large duffel bag. He walked past the yellow tape and right into the construction area, getting Vincent and his men's attention.  
  
"Hey kid, get outta here!" shouted Vincent. "Can't you see I'ma trying to work!?"  
  
"Did you know a Jason Stryker?" asked Ray. Vincent gave him a look that kind of spelled 'you don't know what you're getting yourself into'.  
  
"Maybe I did and maybe I didn't. Why?"  
  
"You ordered his death, didn't you?"  
  
Vincent his right arm, signaling one of his men to raise a gun at Ray. He smirked and looked at Ray.  
  
"What are ya gonna do about it, pipsqueak?"  
  
"Funny you should ask..." replied Ray. He opened the duffel bag up and pulled something out. It was a small creature that resembled a large bowling ball with wings. Its name was DemiDevimon.  
  
"What the hell is that thing?" asked Vincent, disgusted by it.  
  
Ray simply pulled a Yami D-Volver from his pocket and held it into the air.  
  
(Irvine told me everything. And gave me my new mission. But my first mission is to avenge my brother!!!) he thought. "DemiDevimon... let's see what you can do!!!"  
  
DemiDevimon began to glow and Vincent began to freak out, as did most of his men.  
  
"DemiDevimon Shinka..."  
  
"Shoot it!!!" screamed Vincent. "We'll show this freak show what it means ta' mess with the Rippers!"  
  
Vincent's right hand man fired from his rifle at DemiDevimon, but the small form of him had grown larger, taking on a more menacing shape. The white colored demon Digimon grabbed the bullet with his left hand and crunched it in his palm, dropping silver colored dust on the ground of the construction site.  
  
"... ICEDEVIMON!!!"  
  
"Holy shit, Vince! Look at that thing!" exclaimed his right hand man.  
  
"Don't look at it! KILL IT!!!"  
  
Ray dropped to the ground and rolled to the side, avoiding gunfire. Five men opened fire on IceDevimon, who grinned and flapped his wings with force, blasting all the bullets away harmlessly. He glanced around, and spoke in a voice that had an eerie devilish echo to it.  
  
"Now then... which of you weaklings will be my first victim...?"  
  
IceDevimon teleported over behind one of Vincent's men and grabbed him by the arm, lifting him into the air. The man screamed as he could feel IceDevimon's freezing touch seep through his winter coat and onto his skin.  
  
"What da hell is dis...?" gasped Vincent. "It's not human!"  
  
Vincent wasn't the only one freaked out. Dozens of bystanders were gathered outside the yellow tape that sealed off the construction site and all having similar reactions upon seeing IceDevimon. Ace and Nathan were two of them.  
  
"No... Ray... what have you done...?" gasped Ace.  
  
"The cat's out of the bag now!" shouted Nathan. "Call DemiTyrannomon here... quickly! IceDevimon has the power to kill everyone within a two- mile radius!"  
  
"This is what we feared..." sighed Ace, pressing the emergency button on his D-Volver. DemiTyrannomon was instantly warped to the area from their house.  
  
"What's going on?" asked DemiTyrannomon, startled.  
  
"Big trouble." answered Ace.  
  
"AAARGGH!!!" screamed the man as IceDevimon ripped his arm off. He looked at it happily and then dropped it to the ground, along with the grunt. Everyone stared in complete horror at the sadistic Digimon.  
  
"Screw this, boss! We don't get paid to get slaughtered!" screamed Vince's right hand man. He turned and bolted as fast as he could, along with Vince's other men. Vince looked around frantically, getting that horrible feeling of abandonment.  
  
"You killed my brother... and now you're going to pay." growled Ray. "IceDevimon. Get him."  
  
IceDevimon flapped his demonic wings and took to the air, soaring at Vince. In a last-ditch attempt to save himself, Vince pulled a handgun out of his coat and shot IceDevimon directly in the head! The fallen angel Digimon crumpled to the ground immediately, only a few inches away from Vincent.  
  
"Did I... kill it...?" asked Vince, in complete shock. He went and stood over IceDevimon's body, which lay there, unmoving.  
  
IceDevimon's arm shot out and grabbed Vince by the leg. He then turned and hurled Vincent halfway through the construction zone and crashing through the brick wall of the unfinished Gogoplex. There was no way he'd survive that.  
  
"Ray..." began the demonic Digimon. "Part of Irvine's deal was to keep me under wraps. And since all these people have seen us... they must all die."  
  
"Do what you must." said Ray. "I don't care about anything anymore except the mission."  
  
"Are you a freak?!" shouted Nathan. Ray turned to see Nathan hop over the yellow tape and face him. "Killing these people is not something you want to do, Ray! Trust me! I've been given this kind of invigorating power before! You feel omnipotent now..."  
  
Nathan looked at the ground and closed his eyes tightly.  
  
"... but you aren't. What you are doing will drive you away from society... it will lead you down a path of darkness... and scar you for life..."  
  
Ray gave Nathan a thoughtful glance and then turned away from him.  
  
"Society doesn't matter to me. The mission only matters to me now. There was an empty void in my life and he filled it."  
  
"He who?" asked Nathan. He had hoped to stop Ray earlier than this, but IceDevimon was still approaching the gathering crowd. (Fuck those stupid Yami D-Volvers. Ray would never act like this under his own free will.)  
  
"That would be telling." replied Ray. "Now leave, Nathan. Before I decide to kill you too."  
  
"No! Give me that D-Volver!" screamed Nathan. He ran and tackled Ray, reaching for it, but Ray kicked him off. Nathan slid through the snow and dirt a bit and looked upwards at Ray, who pulled himself off the ground.  
  
"I warned you, Nathan! IceDevimon!"  
  
IceDevimon turned and looked at Nathan, then licked his lips, hungry to cause more pain.  
  
"This is a coincidence. He's one of the Hikari Chosen." said IceDevimon.  
  
"So am I!!!" screamed Ace's voice. Ray, Nathan and IceDevimon all turned to look and saw Dragonmon come flying in at top-speed, gunning right for IceDevimon! Ace leapt off him and Dragonmon prepared a mighty attack for IceDevimon!  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!"  
  
Dragonmon blasted fire at IceDevimon, thinking he would be weak to that particular element. IceDevimon simply reflected the shot with a sweep of his palm.  
  
"What the--" began Dragonmon, startled completely. He was hit by his own fire breath and sent flying backwards into a crane that was being used in the construction. The crane collapsed forward and smashed down on top of Dragonmon, crushing him!  
  
"Dragonmon!" exclaimed Ace. "No way! Taken out in one hit!"  
  
"You two shouldn't have got involved." growled Ray. "Now you'll all have to suffer!!!"  
  
Nathan and Ace backed away from Ray, about ready to turn and run.  
  
"No they won't." said a voice. Everyone looked to see Amara had made her way onto the battlefield, with her partner, Crystalmon. Ray looked at her skeptically.  
  
"Amara--" he gasped. "You have a Yami D-Volver as well?"  
  
"You've jeopardized the mission, Ray." said Amara, giving him an angry look. IceDevimon stopped and looked at them as well.  
  
(What were you thinking, IceDevimon?) projected Crystalmon telepathically. (It's our job to keep them out of trouble.)  
  
"I-- I apologize, Crystalmon."  
  
"Okay, I'm lost." whispered Nathan to Ace. "Are we gonna die?"  
  
(I'm going to erase the memories of everyone here with my powers.) projected Crystalmon. (Even yours, Ray and IceDevimon. It is a taxing feat, but we must preserve our anonymity. Ace and Nathan will have to be killed another day.)  
  
"Or you could kill us and then wipe the--" began Ace, but Nathan clamped his hand over Ace's mouth.  
  
"Are you a moron?!" exclaimed Nathan. "Let's just get outta here!"  
  
Nathan turned and ran, while Ace picked up DemiTyrannomon and high- tailed it out of there after him. Amara gave them a glance.  
  
"Ace and Nathan are--"  
  
(Let them go.) projected Crystalmon. (Now stand back, Amara...)  
  
- - -  
  
Ray's dorm room:  
  
Ray tasted pillow. He opened his eyes and saw he was staring into one. He sat up quickly and noticed he was in his bed in his dorm room. He looked around, confused.  
  
"That's odd..." he began. "I could've sworn I was outside a moment ago..."  
  
"You awake?" asked DemiDevimon. "You've been sleeping for hours!"  
  
"I have?"  
  
Ray looked around nervously and then his eyes settled on DemiDevimon.  
  
"I guess I have. Although I could swear--"  
  
"Hey, I was listening to your talking box earlier. You know that guy, Vincent? Well someone took care of him for us! He was in the obituaries!"  
  
"Awesome." replied Ray. "To be honest I don't think I would've had the guts to go face him..."  
  
"Well, what should we do now?"  
  
"Lay low... and figure out what Irvine wants us to do next."  
  
"I can do that."  
  
- - -  
  
No more than four rooms over, Amara and Crystalmon were also sitting on a bed. Amara had her legs propped up and was resting her head on them, also listening to the radio.  
  
"A freak explosion. That's what they came up with." she groaned. "A freak explosion doesn't rip someone's arm off."  
  
(They're make it a conspiracy. You know how dumb humans can be.)  
  
"I am a human." replied Amara, taking offense.  
  
(... yes. Right. You are.) replied Crystalmon, rather delayed.  
  
"Why didn't you erase Ace and Nathan's memories along with everyone else?" asked Amara, decided not to comment on Crystalmon's last sentence.  
  
(Can't.)  
  
"Why not?"  
  
(They've got their D-Volvers protecting them. Those things do more than just make us evolve you know...) Crystalmon informed her. (They're a vital tool in our victory.)  
  
"WHAT VICTORY?!" shouted Amara, getting annoyed. "I am not killing them! Count me out!"  
  
Amara turned away from Crystalmon.  
  
"Destroying their D-Volvers is fine... but I'm not killing them..."  
  
(You'll see it my way eventually, Amara.) said Crystalmon. (Ray did.)  
  
"You wiped his mind clean. He probably doesn't even remember we're Yami Chosen. Look, I found out where Lee lives. Tomorrow I'll go swipe his D-Volver while he's asleep."  
  
(Hmmm... sure you will.) thought Crystalmon. She turned and left Amara's bedroom, heading into the bathroom.  
  
(There has to be some way to get Amara to follow to objective...) thought Crystalmon. She then projected her thoughts far beyond the walls of the college. (Irvine... fit Magemon with a partner. I need his help.)  
  
(He's the last one and we're searching right now.) was his answer.  
  
(Excellent.) 


	6. Mindbender

Late at night in the college dorms, all the lights were shut off and everyone was asleep. Everything was trapped in a nice state of tranquility.  
  
We pan along all the closed doors, each with a different indicating number on them.  
  
We see Amara in her room, the tanned girl passed out on her bed with no covers on, huddled in a ball for warmth. Crystalmon is curled up at the foot of her bed, sleeping as well.  
  
Next we see Ray, sleeping in a beanbag chair in front of a TV that was still on. DemiDevimon was sitting on his head, also asleep.  
  
Then Arik is next. Lee's friend was sleeping comfortably in his bed, dreaming about getting his partner back.  
  
Next we come to Tori's unbelievably messy room. She slept only in a bra... and that was about it. Salamon tugged blankets over her and then curled up next to her stomach, falling asleep.  
  
Finally we come to Alison's room and look at her bed. But it's empty. Ali instead was pacing back and forth around her room, like an anxious child waiting to open his Christmas presents.  
  
"Oh no. Oh no. Oh no no no." she whispered to herself. "This is not happening to me."  
  
Ali cleared a bunch of junk off of her desk, shoving it onto the floor. She couldn't find was she was looking for under the mess of clothes, schoolwork and magazines.  
  
She pulled open a drawer in her desk and pulled out her D-Volver. That wasn't what she was looking for. She dug deeper and found some pens, a few video games and some blank CDs. She slammed the drawer shut and huffed furiously.  
  
She leaned over to the phone and pressed seven of the numerical digits on it. She waited as it rang. And rang. And rang.  
  
"Mmmph? Who goes there?" answered Ace, half-sleeping.  
  
"Ace! Oh thank god it's you!" exclaimed Ali, relieved. She pressed her hand against her chest and noticed her heart was beating faster than it usually was. Ace seemed to wake up immediately.  
  
"Ali? You have no idea how long I've wanted to hear tha--"  
  
"Can I talk to Lee?! It's urgent!"  
  
There was an annoyed mumble from the other side of the phone and Ace's voice came over it again.  
  
"Lee. Right." he groaned with dissatisfaction. "You know it's... 4:43 in the morning?! I'm going back to sleepy-land..."  
  
"Ace, let me talk to Lee or I'll kick your testicles into your brain." threatened Ali, not patient enough for his games.  
  
"Well, as pleasant as that sounds, I think I'll take the phone to Lee."  
  
Ali listened as she could hear Ace open the door from his room and go open Lee's door. She tapped her foot impatiently, just longing to hear her boyfriend's voice.  
  
"Lee! Wake up! The Shadow are back! They possessed Nathan and Arik!" screamed Ace. "They got me right in the arm!"  
  
Ali heard Ace pretend to collapse to the ground and heard more ruffling.  
  
"What!? Kokuwamon! We better Bio-Mer--"  
  
"Nah, just kidding. Alison's on the phone for you."  
  
Ali fell over.  
  
"Ace! Get outta my room!" hissed Lee. Ali heard Ace's laughter fade as a the sound of a door slamming cut it off. "Hello, Alison?"  
  
"Lee!" she shouted, happily.  
  
"It's... late. Or early. Or both." he groaned, sleepily. "What do you want?"  
  
"I have something I have to tell you. I--" she began, but then stopped. She looked around her empty room and had second-thoughts about ever picking up the phone.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"I..."  
  
"You..." followed Lee, somewhat unamused.  
  
"I love you, is all." she sighed. "I'll see you tomorrow at school."  
  
"What? Well okay, love you too. Did you really have to call me to tell me that?"  
  
"... sure. I'm sorry." she replied, hanging up the phone. She fell onto her bed and began to cry. Something was definitely wrong with her. But how would everyone react if they found out what?  
  
Heroes & Villains, Chapter Five: Mindbender  
  
"Jeska Nekona, I'm not going to tell you again." growled Dean Rathjen's commanding voice. His office was not somewhere you wanted to be, especially in two situations.  
  
One, when he didn't sleep last night due to some sort of family emergency.  
  
And two, when you've sworn at him in the hallway after he told you not to shove freshmen around.  
  
This was both. And the girl unfortunate enough to receive his wrath was none too happy about it. Jeska was a freshman however, and the lowest age group in the college, 18. However, she was smart enough to pass college already if she really wanted too.  
  
The girl had long red hair (finally someone who doesn't have brown hair) and rolled her green eyes as Rathjen gave her stern looks.  
  
"Don't. Piss. Me. Off." he growled.  
  
"Yeah yeah." she groaned, bored. "Now can I go? You making me late for psychology class isn't going to teach me any retarded discipline."  
  
"I-- oh I give up." he sighed, sitting back in his chair. "You're dismissed. Just don't let me catch you again."  
  
"No problem. And don't let me catch you sneaking pop from the vending machine again." said Jeska, pointing at him and leaving the office. He raised an eyebrow at her, looked at the Pepsi on his desk and sighed in defeat.  
  
"Kids are just too smart these days... we need a robot to be the Dean..."  
  
- - -  
  
"Ace, I never want you to do that again." growled Lee in a low tone. Lee was walking down the hallways along with Ace, both of them heading to their classes. Ace was wearing his favorite black shirt with the white stripe on the sleeve. Lee was wearing a white T-shirt accompanied by a black jacket and the necklace Ali gave him of course.  
  
"You mean run into your room in the middle of the night and tell you the Shadow returned, but then you find it's something worse: Ali on the phone!!!"  
  
Lee sighed and massaged his brow.  
  
"Do it again and you'll never get a ride to school again."  
  
"Well maybe I won't have to. I'm going for my novice license today." retorted Ace, sticking his tongue out at Lee.  
  
"Like you'll pass. Have you even read the book?"  
  
"There's a book?" asked Ace, clueless. To avoid further embarrassment, he decided it was time to change the subject. "Look, there's Ali. Maybe you can find out why she was tripping last night."  
  
Lee and Ace walked over to Ali, who was wearing a blue sweatshirt and her necklace from Lee. She was clutching her books tightly to her chest and walking down the hallway with her head lowered to the ground.  
  
"Hey, Ali!" shouted Lee. Ali looked and he and Ace waved at her. She lowered her head again and walked away twice as fast. Lee stopped waving slowly and confusedly.  
  
"Whoa... what was that about?" asked Ace. "Hey, I know why she's looking so ashamed! She must've cheated on you!"  
  
"Shut up." replied Lee. (What is wrong with her? She calls me last night to tell me about nothing and then ignores me today... that's not like her at all...)  
  
Ace was still rambling on.  
  
"Yeah, she cheated on you with ME! And we did all it all night lo-- OW!"  
  
Lee had his right arm wrapped around Ace's neck and placed his left arm underneath his knees, hoisting Ace upside-down into the air.  
  
"Lee! What the hell are you doing?!"  
  
"Learned this in Karate." answered Lee, smiling at his vertically unbalanced friend. "Now take it back."  
  
"No!"  
  
"Fine. Then enjoy your lunch."  
  
Lee dumped Ace headfirst into a garbage can and headed for his Psychology class. Ace fell over onto his butt, his upper body stuck in the can.  
  
"Hello?! Anyone!?" he shouted as a gathering crowd of kids began to laugh at him. "Lee?! Ali?! Arik?! ... ... Tori?"  
  
Lee made it to Psychology class and saw five other students crowded around a closed door, looking confused. The blonde Chosen walked up next to them and saw a notice on the door telling them the Psychology class was cut from the funding and they had to close it down.  
  
"What is up with that?" another boy asked Lee. "I was acing this course!"  
  
"Yeah, so was I. This couldn't be any more ridiculous." complained Lee, upset by this news. "Psych was one of his favorite classes."  
  
"What da hell is this...?" asked Jeska, approaching the classroom. "Class closed?! WHAT?!"  
  
"You seem angry. Join the club." said Lee, sarcastically.  
  
"Don't joke with me, you worm. I need this course! How am I supposed to get anywhere in life with just Literature class?" she growled, with an annoyed emphasis on Literature.  
  
"Oh yes, Psychology students. I forgot to make an announcement." said Dean Rathjen, walking over to the small group of kids. "Psych class is indefinitely closed. You're all free in this block."  
  
"That's gay. Why?" asked Lee.  
  
"Did you take this class away?!" exclaimed Jeska, rather furious. "Cuz I swear if you--"  
  
"Calm down." said Rathjen, raising his hands in peace. "Don't accuse me of anything! Mayor Trainer cut the funding to fix the damage caused to the new Gogoplex yesterday. Acting was cancelled too, so you aren't the only students losing classes."  
  
"Why not cancel something useless? Like Art."  
  
"Hey, I like Art!" shouted Lee to Jeska. "We're making ice sculptures."  
  
"We're making ice sculptures." replied Jeska in a whiny, high-pitched mockery of Lee's voice. Lee rolled his eyes and looked at Dean Rathjen, who was cleaning his glasses on his vest.  
  
"My dad cut the funding?"  
  
"Yes, but we might get it back if he doesn't win the election."  
  
"Election?" asked Lee.  
  
"Yeah. Don't you pay attention to current events even, dork?" butted in Jeska. "Mayor Trainer and Candidate Albert Green will be holding their electoral conference tonight."  
  
"That's precisely correct." said Dean Rathjen. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have other matters to attend too."  
  
Dean Rathjen walked off and Lee thought to himself for a minute.  
  
"Oh yeah, my dad wants me to head down to City Hall and help him make banners..." said Lee to himself, strolling off.  
  
"Maybe I should go to city hall and bitch at him." mumbled Jeska, pissed. "Now what am I supposed to do?"  
  
"You could bitch at him... or you could get even." said a voice. Jeska turned to see a man leaning up against the wall next to the former Psychology class door. We've seen this man before, it was Matt Irvine.  
  
"Get even. Right buddy." replied Jeska, sarcastically. "Aren't you a little old to be in here?"  
  
"You think your little Psychology class was important?" inquired Irvine, a little sarcastically himself as he jutted his thumb in the direction of the door. Jeska just raised an eyebrow at him, listening to what he had to say.  
  
"Well, now you'll be taking a real course. In life." said Irvine, throwing something at Jeska. She caught it in her right hand and looked at it. It was a Yami D-Volver.  
  
"What is it? A virtual pet?" asked Jeska, looking the device over.  
  
"No. It's your ticket."  
  
"To what?"  
  
"Power." finished Irvine, grinning widely. "Return to your dorm room and press the large button on the back of it. You'll get all your instructions then. But don't press that button until you're safely confined."  
  
Irvine turned and walked down the hallway, leaving the school. He took his hat off and soaked up the crisp December air.  
  
"The fourth and final one has been Chosen." he said into a communication device.  
  
"Good. We have a lock on her. Now hopefully she'll eliminate Mayor Trainer for me." replied a voice from it. "Shutting down that class to provoke her was a stroke of my genius, of course."  
  
"Yeah." said Irvine, although he didn't care much for his ally's goals. (Hopefully she'll eliminate Lee, and weaken Trinity Server's barrier. It's almost time to gather all of my children... although...)  
  
Irvine glanced at the courtyard, where Amara was sitting on a picnic table and reading a book.  
  
(That one needs to undergo some re-education...)  
  
- - -  
  
Later that day:  
  
"Well are you going in or not?" asked Arik. Arik was standing across from Ace outside of the Department of Motor Vehicles. Ace was too nervous to go inside and take his driver's test.  
  
"I don't know!" exclaimed Ace. "I'll fail."  
  
"Come on, Ace. I passed. Lee passed. Ali passed. James passed. Earnest passed. Nathan--"  
  
"Okay, okay! I get it! Everyone has their license except me! And I even have that sweet car my dad bought me." said Ace, working up his confidence. "Alright, I'm going in!"  
  
Ace turned to head into the DMV, but Arik put his hand on Ace's shoulder to stop him.  
  
"What now, Arik?"  
  
"You're not going in there. You're going home and taking a shower. You reek and no one is gonna wanna take someone who reeks so bad on a drive." Arik informed him.  
  
"Heh heh... Lee dumped me in a garbage can..." sighed Ace. "The world does just not want me to drive..."  
  
- - -  
  
City Hall:  
  
"Alright Lee, you know how to run the computer imaging program, right?"  
  
"Yes, dad."  
  
"And you know what it's supposed to say, right?"  
  
"TRAINER FOR MAYOR!"  
  
"Ha ha! Seems rather simple, doesn't it?" laughed Lee's father. Richard Trainer had blonde hair just like his son, and was only about an inch taller that him. He was wearing a grey and black suit, with a pin on his right breast saying Trainer For Mayor. He was trying to get Lee involved in his political activities and Lee was more than happy to spend time with his father.  
  
"I can do it dad. I painted posters for my lemonade stand when I was five."  
  
"Yes, and you guys poisoned it. Remember how many parents called in with complaints?" asked his dad.  
  
"Well how were Ace and I supposed to know mud was a bad ingredient for refreshing drinks?!"  
  
Lee started up the imaging program and began to make the banners as flashy as possible. His dad turned away and went to leave the room. His opponent came walking in at that moment.  
  
"Trainer." said the man, that supposed to pass as a greeting.  
  
"Green." replied Lee's dad, greeting him back. The two men stared at each other as if they were about to draw guns and shoot each other. Albert Green was a much skinner man than Lee's father was, and shorter too. But he was very intelligent and crafty and had been trying to be the mayor for years. This year, he had a good chance and more supporters than ever.  
  
"Nice day." said Green.  
  
"It is." replied Trainer.  
  
With that, Lee's dad left and Albert walked in to use the photocopier for something. He glanced over at Lee, who was busy making his dad's posters.  
  
"You're good with that program, huh Lee?"  
  
"My girlfriend taught me so much stuff about computers that I might as well be one." replied Lee, working the computer automatically as he looked at Green. "How is your wife?"  
  
"Sick as ever." replied Albert, solemnly sipping his coffee. "But let's not discuss such matters. I'll pay you 500 dollars to make posters for my campaign too."  
  
Lee raised an eyebrow at Green. Green always had some sort of ploy or trick up his sleeve to get people to do what he wanted for them. But Lee couldn't... go against his dad... could he?  
  
"What do I need with 500 dollars?" asked Lee, turning back to the computer. But that was meant to be a conversation ender. Green however, didn't pick that hint up.  
  
"To pay the rent on your house?"  
  
"City owns the house, which means dad owns the house. Ace, Nathan and I have all expenses covered."  
  
"Not if he loses the election." replied Green. "You three could lose the house unless I decide to keep you there."  
  
(Lose the house? Ace and Nathan would be so pissed at me!)  
  
Green walked over to Lee and leaned down next to him, since Lee was sitting in a chair.  
  
"What about this? You'll get to keep the house no matter what and make 500 bucks. You can use it to buy a present for your girlfriend."  
  
(Argh, I knew he was going to do this! Dad won't lose the election... so my posters shouldn't make a difference in Green's campaign. And... Ali really does deserve something.)  
  
"I'll do it." said Lee, reluctantly.  
  
"Good." replied Green, slipping 500 dollars into Lee's jacket pocket. "Make me proud."  
  
"Yeah..." sighed Lee.  
  
- - -  
  
Meanwhile at the front of City Hall, one familiar red-headed girl came walking up the steps. Jeska glared at the large, white building and stopped in front of the doors. Beside her a strange-looking human dressed in dark clothing and with even darker hair huddled up the steps next to her. But it wasn't a human... it was a very unique Digimon.  
  
"Magemon... when I said I wanted to get revenge on Mayor Trainer... I didn't actually mean we were going to DO it."  
  
"Irvine told me to take you on a training exercise. Think of this as one."  
  
"A training exercise that involves breaking, entering, and attacking a public official? Geez, what do Digimon do when they really fight?"  
  
"You'll see." said Magemon. "Now wait here."  
  
Magemon walked in the front doors of City Hall, and was accosted by two security guards.  
  
"Excuse me, you can't come in here without proper clearance." said one of the guards. He was an Asian man with black hair and wearing a blue uniform. Magemon just gave him a blank stare.  
  
"Lionel... what the hell is this thing?" asked the Asian guard. "It's not--"  
  
Magemon suddenly began to morph his molecules and shape-shifted into the Asian guard. Both guards screamed and raised their guns, but Magemon was too fast for them in his new form. He punched the Asian guard in the face and hurled him into the other guard! He picked up one of the guns and pushed the bodies behind a desk. He then began to walk through the hall.  
  
"What the hell was that?" asked a security guard, watching the monitors. "Did I just see Chuck beat up-- oh my god!"  
  
He picked up the microphone and began to yell into it.  
  
"Code red! We have an intruder! It looks exactly like Security Guard Chuck McKenzie!"  
  
Three guards rushed into the main hall and pointed their guns around. One fat guard was falling behind, and Magemon was lurking on the balcony above, still disguised as Chuck. He leapt down on top of the fat guard, clamping one hand over his mouth and using the other to break his neck.  
  
"I don't see Chuck anywhere." replied a blonde guard into the communicator. "Are you sure?"  
  
The fat guard walked up next to him and gasped in realization.  
  
"It's a meta morph! It could be anyone!"  
  
"Anyone...?" asked the blonde guard, coming to realization that it could be one of his companions. Suddenly the fat guard slugged him in the face! The last remaining guard went to draw his gun, but the fat guard swiped the blonde guard's gun out of the air and shot him first! He then turned and shot out the cameras. Jeska walked into the hall, applauding. The Fat Guard then morphed back into Magemon.  
  
"Bravo. That guy wasn't kidding when he said I'd have power." said Jeska.  
  
Magemon nodded, and the two of them walked out of the main hall into another corridor. Magemon shifted into one of the security guards from earlier and put his arm around Jeska.  
  
"Act scared." whispered Magemon.  
  
"Hey! Did you check that area?" asked another guard, running up to Magemon.  
  
"Yeah, all I found was this frightened girl." replied Magemon. "Go check corridor B!"  
  
The guard turned around to do as told and Magemon clubbed him in the back of the neck with the butt of his gun.  
  
"Too easy." said Magemon, still in the guard's form. "Come now, Jeska."  
  
(Magemon!) hissed Crystalmon, telepathically into his head. (What are you doing?!)  
  
(Just having some fun.) replied Magemon. (DemiDevimon got to cause havoc, so I want too. And I'm showcasing Jeska my abilities.)  
  
(Just don't get your partner killed or reveal her identity, you moron.) Crystalmon warned him. (If she dies, you die with her! When you're done, I need your help with my partner.)  
  
Crystalmon cut off the mental link and Magemon blinked in realization.  
  
(I'd die with her...?)  
  
- - -  
  
"Code red... what does that mean?" asked Lee.  
  
"It means they're after your father!" shouted a security guard, running by. "I'm locking this room down!"  
  
"No, wait--" began Lee, but a metal door slammed down in front of him to protect him. He ran over and slammed his fist on it. "No! I don't want to be trapped in here!"  
  
Lee pulled his D-Volver out of his pocket and called Kokuwamon to him. Kokuwamon materialized in front of the D-Volver and looked around confusedly.  
  
"What's up?" asked Kokuwamon.  
  
"Someone is trying to kill my dad! Can you sense any Digimon around here?"  
  
Kokuwamon concentrated for a second and then nodded in response.  
  
"That's what I thought... it's got to be another Yami Chosen." replied Lee, biting his lip. "Those guards won't be able to handle it. We'll have to take matters into our own hands!"  
  
"But what about keeping Digimon under wraps?"  
  
"People's lives are at stake. That's more important right now! Now let's break down this door!" ordered Lee. Kokuwamon clamped his mandibles together.  
  
"MINI-SCISSOR CLAW!!!"  
  
Kokuwamon slashed through the metal easily, making a hole for him to walk out. Lee leaned down and gave Kokuwamon an exaggerated stare.  
  
"Could you make the hole any bigger?" asked Lee, annoyed.  
  
"You can crawl. That's what you get for waking me up." replied Kokuwamon, tartly. Lee grumbled and squeezed his way through the small door. He stood up and brushed himself off in the hallway when suddenly, Jeska and the security guard came running around the corner!  
  
"Lee!" exclaimed Jeska. "Well, this sure got interesting."  
  
"Hello, Kokuwamon." said Magemon, grinning in the form of the security guard. "Lovely job you did keeping up out of here."  
  
Kokuwamon glared at the security guard and Lee just looked completely confused.  
  
"Uh... I'm lost. Jeska, you're a Yami Chosen and your partner is some black guy?" asked Lee.  
  
"That's really Magemon." Kokuwamon informed him. "He's a Child who can change shape. That's probably how he and Jeska got in here so easily."  
  
"You're trying to kill my dad?!" exclaimed Lee.  
  
"Nah. I'm just having fun. Doing battle with you should be more fun, though." answered Jeska. "Are you up to it?"  
  
"Uhhh... maybe..." replied Magemon, unsure.  
  
"Magemon isn't much of a fighter." Kokuwamon told Lee. "He prefers to have things well planned out before he does them. I think our appearance may have thrown him off track."  
  
"Nothing throws me off track." growled Magemon.  
  
"Mini-Electro Shocker!!!" shouted Kokuwamon. He blasted Magemon through the hallway and he crashed into the wall end of it, returning to his original form and collapsing onto the tiled floor. Jeska bit her lip and looked at Lee and his partner.  
  
"That throw ya far enough?" shouted Kokuwamon. He and Lee cheered, figuring the had the battle won.  
  
"That was sad, Jeska." said Lee, disapprovingly.  
  
"I'm not out yet!" she replied defiantly. She whipped out her black D- Volver and began pressing buttons on it. "One of these has to do something!"  
  
After hitting one, Magemon began to glow. Jeska's eyes widened.  
  
"That looks like something..." she gasped.  
  
"Oh no. He's evolving." said Kokuwamon.  
  
"Magemon Shinka..."  
  
Magemon changed form slightly, gaining battle armor instead of clothes. His lower face was still consealed behind the armor.  
  
"TAWNOSMON!!!"  
  
"What?" asked Lee, sarcastically. "Tawnosmon? He doesn't look any stronger at all!"  
  
"Everything isn't judged on strength, dork." hissed Jeska. "I hope..."  
  
Kokuwamon clamped his mandibles again and faced off with Tawnosmon, who stood there with his arms crossed, waiting for Kokuwamon to make a move.  
  
"MINI SCISSOR CLAW!!!" shrieked Kokuwamon, taking to the air and flying at Tawnosmon.  
  
"ASTRAL PROJECTION!!!"  
  
Kokuwamon slashed air and turned around to see two Tawnosmon's floating in the air behind him. He gasped, confused.  
  
"What the--!" exclaimed Lee. "How'd he do that!?"  
  
"MINI ELECTRO SHOCKER!!!" screamed Kokuwamon, firing at the right Tawnosmon. The blast flew right through him and the image faded. The left, real Tawnosmon laughed at him.  
  
"Oh my, how easily we are deceived by optical illusions, Kokuwamon." laughed Tawnosmon.  
  
"I'm gonna keep my eye on you from now on!" growled Kokuwamon, changing direction and charging at him again.  
  
"ASTRAL PROJECTION!!"  
  
Kokuwamon was going to try and hit both Tawnosmon's at once this time... but eight Tawnosmon's appeared! He yelped and slashed at one, but it was an illusion that simply faded.  
  
"Holy crap!" exclaimed Lee. "I can't tell any of them apart!"  
  
Jeska squinted and looked at them.  
  
"Neither can I... but Magemon is amazing..."  
  
"MINI ELECTRO SHOCKER!!!" yelled Kokuwamon, blasting another illusion. "Lee, this is ridiculous! You better shift me to Adult form!"  
  
"I can't! We'll smash City Hall! You'll have to fight him as a child!" shouted Lee back.  
  
"Tawnosmon, I'm bored of this. Can you finish him off already?" asked Jeska. All six Tawnosmon's nodded in agreement.  
  
"ASTRAL PROJECTION!!!" yelled all six Tawnosmon's... becoming sixteen Tawnosmon's! Kokuwamon looked around frantically as they filled the hallway and he was totally unable to discern which was the real one! They all charged Kokuwamon, but he couldn't tell which way the hit was going to come from!  
  
Kokuwamon was kicked from behind by the real Tawnosmon and sent smashing face-first into the floor. He groaned weakly and Lee ran over to pick him up.  
  
"Well Lee, how was that?" asked Jeska. Lee simply glared at her.  
  
"You know, Jeska." said Tawnosmon, returning from 26 to one. "We are supposed to eliminate Trainer. Why not do it while we're here?"  
  
"Nah, I wanna toy with him some more." replied Jeska. "Let's make tracks! We've caused enough trouble for one day!"  
  
Tawnosmon and Jeska turned and ran the other way. Lee didn't even bother to chase them, he just looked down at poor Kokuwamon laying in his arms.  
  
"Lee... I could've won if I evolved..."  
  
"I know. Let Jeska go on a power trip for now." he replied. "Now we've met all five Yami Chosen... let's just hope things don't get any worse than they are now..."  
  
Lee heard footsteps coming down the hallway. The worst thing about transporting Kokuwamon to where he was, was that he couldn't transport him back. He sent Kokuwamon to hide under the desk in the computer room and stood there, waiting to see who it was.  
  
"Lee! Oh thank god you're safe!" shouted his father with concern. He, Green and three security guards came running into the hallway. Lee's dad locked him in a hug.  
  
"Hi dad." replied Lee.  
  
"Hey Lee..." began one of the security guards, noticing the cut in the door. "I locked that door down... how did you... cut your way out...?"  
  
"Uhhh... the robber tried to get in with a blow torch. But when he hear you guys coming, he took off." lied Lee.  
  
"But this was cut from the inside..." began the guard. Lee stammered a bit more, and then tried to change the subject.  
  
"Look, I gotta go buy something for Alison, dad. I just have to go get my things from that room." he said.  
  
"Yeah alright." replied Mayor Trainer. "You three go make sure the perimeter is secure."  
  
The guards rushed off and Green followed Lee into the room.  
  
"Did you make my poster layout?" asked Green.  
  
"Yeah." replied Lee. "It's saved onto that computer. Don't tell my dad..."  
  
"I won't. And good work using your Digimon to get out of the room."  
  
Lee froze and looked at Green, who grinned.  
  
"How do you..."  
  
Green simply turned and left the room.  
  
"Enjoy your money, Lee."  
  
Lee picked up Kokuwamon and stared at the door as he left. Kokuwamon gave him a look of concern.  
  
"Lee... that guy could be trouble..." began Kokuwamon. Lee nodded and decided he had enough action for one day.  
  
"We'll figure it out later. Let's get the hell outta here."  
  
- - -  
  
Lee returned home later and saw Ace and Arik on the couch in the living room. Ace looked extremely stressed and Arik glanced up at Lee as he walked in.  
  
"Hey Lee. Welcome home." said Arik.  
  
"You don't live here. Get out." joked Lee, setting Kokuwamon on the floor and holding a bag in his right hand. "What's up with garbage boy?"  
  
"He failed his novice test." answered Arik. "Twice."  
  
"Good work." said Lee, applauding. Ace gave him the finger. Lee chuckled and went and sat down on the couch next to Arik, picking up the phone.  
  
"Ooh, what do we have here?" asked Arik, picking up the bag and peeking inside. He eyes widened with amazement. "HOLY HELL!!! Who did you buy that for?!"  
  
Ace looked in the back and his eyes widened too.  
  
"Jesus, Lee!" he exclaimed. "How much did that cost?!"  
  
"350 dollars." answered Lee. Ace and Arik both stared at him.  
  
"Is it for me?" asked Ace, grinning. Lee threw a couch pillow in his face and turned his attention toward the phone. "Hey Ali! What's up?"  
  
"Uhhh... nothing."  
  
"You wanna come over for a bit? I'll come pick ya up."  
  
"No. I'm, uhm. Busy." she answered, frantically.  
  
"LEE BOUGHT YOU A--" began Ace, but Arik clamped his hand over Ace's mouth.  
  
"Oh, you got me something?" asked Ali. "Well I promise you we'll talk tomorrow."  
  
"Uhm... kay." replied Lee, dejectedly. "See you tomorrow then."  
  
"Yup. Tomorrow."  
  
Ali hung up and Lee hung up shortly after. Ali had been acting very weird this past day, and Lee had to figure out why.  
  
"Oh yeah." said Lee, trying to get his mind off of Ali. "We've got five Yami Chosen now. Five to three is not a good ratio."  
  
"Who's the last one?" asked Arik.  
  
"A girl named Jeska who goes to our school. Now they all go to RTC except Hieshi." answered Lee. "Arik, call Earnest and see if he got Leila back. And if not, ask him if the laptop is still functional. We have to find a way to get you, Nathan, Earnest and Ali battle capable again."  
  
"Or we're gonna be screwed..." gasped Ace. "Well, you already are. Cuz Ali is obviously going to dump you."  
  
"You wanna eat more garbage?"  
  
"... no, sir." 


	7. Dark Ones Unite!

Matt Irvine drove down the streets of Tamur early in the morning. He was driving a sturdy-looking jeep and laying back in the seat in a relaxed fashion, operating the wheel with one hand. The sun was just coming up and staring at the sight was somewhat blinding, so he tried to avoid that.  
  
He pulled up his jeep in front of an old warehouse down by the bay and pressed a button on his rearview mirror that opened the door to the warehouse. He drove his jeep inside and parked it. He then walked over to the wall and opened up what looked like an electrical circuit box.  
  
It was actually a keyboard with numbers on it. He entered a nine-digit password and the wall opened up, revealing a staircase. After walking for a good twenty minutes, he came down to a series of rooms that looked like an underground base of some sort. He headed for the main room and sat down in his large black chair.  
  
"It's time to gather my children..."  
  
- - -  
  
"Magemon, do we have to do this now?" asked Jeska. "It's seven in the morning... I sleep until ten at least."  
  
Jeska yawned and stretched her arms out, attempting to wake herself. Her strange-looking Digimon shook his head.  
  
"There is no need for you to arise, Jeska. Business is between Crystalmon and myself. You can go back to sleep."  
  
"Mmmm... good." she yawned, conking out immediately. Magemon shifted his molecules so that he looked like Jeska and headed out the dorm room door.  
  
Thankfully it was still early, but just in case someone saw him, it was best to disguise himself. He walked down the corridor until he reached a darkened corner. Crystalmon was sitting there, whatever small light there was reflecting off her shimmering body.  
  
(Took you long enough, Magemon.)  
  
"I'm sorry." he replied in Jeska's form. "I accidentally woke Jeska up. Now what did you wish to see me about?"  
  
(My partner, Amara... she's... strange. She isn't whole-hearted in our goal to kill the Hikari Chosen.)  
  
"And why should she be? They were normal kids until we came into their lives. The Yami D-Volvers can only affect their personalities so much."  
  
(I know, that moron Irvine should have made them stronger. growled Crystalmon. But nevertheless, there is always a plan B. Amara is mostly reluctant to fight because she has feelings for the leader of the Hikari Chosen: Lee Trainer.)  
  
"Ah yes. I met with Trainer and Kokuwamon yesterday."  
  
(So you know what he looks like, then?) inquired Crystalmon. Magemon nodded. Good.  
  
- - -  
  
Amara mumbled and turned in her bed, not wanting to wake up. Crystalmon was poking her, though, and it was getting annoying.  
  
"Whaaat is it, Crystalmon? I'm comfy..." groaned Amara, grabbing her pillow and stuffing it on top of her head. Crystalmon swatted it off the bed.  
  
(Get up. Lazy.)  
  
"Buuut it's the weeeekend." whined Amara more, pulling the blankets over her face so Crystalmon couldn't see her tired brown eyes and matching hair. Crystalmon grumbled and threw her blankets off the bed.  
  
(And I said get up.)  
  
"You say alot of things." moaned Amara, sitting up in her bed. She wrapped some blankets around her body to cover her nudity and Crystalmon leapt backwards off the bed.  
  
(You never told me you sleep nude.)  
  
"I just said it's the weekend." she growled. "Where are my clothes?"  
  
(I ate them.)  
  
(You did not,) projected Amara back, deciding to use her telepathy for a moment. She glanced around the room and saw them laying on the floor at the foot of her bed.  
  
"Do ya mind?" she asked. Crystalmon turned away from her as she changed.  
  
(So what are your plans for today, Amara?)  
  
"I keep telling you it's the weekend." hissed Amara, fastening her bra over her breasts. She grabbed a t-shirt and shoved it over her head, yanking it down to her neck. "The plan was to sleep all day. But now that you got me up, I'm going to go have breakfast."  
  
(Yes, go break your fast.)  
  
"Uhh... yeah." she replied, slowly, never actually hearing someone say that before. She pulled pants on and walked to the door. "Can you amuse yourself for an hour or so?"  
  
(Yes, I can have telepathic conversations with the other Yami Digimon.)  
  
"Well, it beats the phone..." said Amara, opening the door and leaving her room.  
  
Amara walked over to the stairs to head down to the cafeteria, but she saw a familiar face come running up them. It was a particular blonde-haired boy named Lee. Lee stopped when he saw Amara and she glanced at him.  
  
Oh geez... why is Lee here? I haven't combed my hair or put my make-up on or--  
  
"Hey Amara." he said.  
  
"AHH--hello Lee." she replied, startled. "What are you doing here so early?"  
  
"I came to say hello to my girlfriend." he replied. Amara frowned.  
  
"Oh. You did."  
  
"Yeah, how are you doing?" he asked her.  
  
"I've been better." she replied, crossing her arms and looking away from him. "Why don't you go see Alison and leave me alone?"  
  
"Yeah, I suppose I will. Better than wasting my time talking to you."  
  
"Wh-what?" she stammered. "The nerve!"  
  
"Like, come on Amara. You're too weak to even fight me properly without getting all crushy and crap on me! I've got a girlfriend already, so why don't you toughen up and fight me, so I can destroy your D-Volver and get rid of you?!"  
  
Amara was at a loss for words after that speech. Lee had never spoke so harshly to her before, he always tried to help her.  
  
"You know what, Lee?! The next time we cross paths, I'm going to relocate that tongue of yours myself!" she screamed. Then she ran down the stairs in a huff. Lee grinned and morphed back into his original form of Magemon.  
  
"Worked like a charm..." he said, grinning.  
  
(As I knew it would,) added Crystalmon.  
  
- - -  
  
"Good morning students of Richard Trainer College." spoke the intercom. Amara was standing in line at the cafeteria and glanced at the intercom. The college radio show played every morning, weekend or not.  
  
"Unfortunately, Alison Williams has asked not to sing at all this week, so we won't be getting our national anthem from her. Instead, here's a tape from the soundtrack of--"  
  
"Thank god." said Tori, who was standing in line behind Amara. "That girl really bugs me."  
  
"You too?" asked Amara. (Wow, I actually have something in common with someone.)  
  
"Yeah. So how are you this morning?"  
  
"I've been better. Much better." growled Amara, still fuming about her incident with 'Lee' earlier.  
  
She took her plate of food and went to sit down at a table, but suddenly heard a light beeping noise from her jeans pocket. She reached inside and pulled out her D-Volver, and the LCD screen on it was flashing and had an arrow that was pointing southwest.  
  
"What the hell is this?" she asked herself, trying to keep her D-Volver concealed to herself.  
  
Behind her, Tori was getting the exact same sign on her Yami D-Volver. Balancing her food tray on one hand, she gave it a glance.  
  
(It wants me to follow it?) guessed Tori, although she wouldn't really get an answer unless she followed it. Which is exactly what Irvine wanted his children to do.  
  
- - -  
  
Later, after consulting Crystalmon, Amara took to the street following the mysterious arrow on her D-Volver. She figured that if it led to some sort of trouble, she could always summon Crystalmon to aid her.  
  
(This is unusual...) thought Amara. (The D-Volver has never done something like this before...)  
  
She wrapped her arms around her chest to protect herself from the air and looked down at her D-Volver, walking down the sidewalk in the direction it was pointing. She glanced behind her and saw Tori was following her.  
  
(What the-- what is Tori doing?)  
  
(Why is Amara going the same way as me?) thought Tori at the same time. (Oh well, I'll probly lose her when this arrow thingy tells me to go a different way.)  
  
Amara did a quick scan of Tori's mind and gasped in realization. It had been right in front of them all along.  
  
"Hey Tori!" shouted Amara, happily. "Look!"  
  
Amara held up her Yami D-Volver and Tori's eyes widened. She held up hers as well and ran to catch up with Amara.  
  
"Ohmigod! Amara! You have one too?"  
  
"Well obviously." groaned Amara. "And I'm guessing yours is telling you to go this way."  
  
"Uh-huh."  
  
"Well, let's go together." said Amara. "You must have a partner too, so if there's trouble... we can handle it better."  
  
"Alright." replied Tori. "So what's your partner like?"  
  
Tori and Amara began to engage in mindless conversation as one person looked down on the two of them from a neighboring rooftop. Hieshi stood there with his arms crossed, watching Amara and Tori. The black haired boy was clothed in a black leather jacket to keep himself warm.  
  
"Why are we still following that Amara girl?" asked Levelermon, whom was in Hieshi's right hand. "She's of no use to us."  
  
"She and that other girl are being led somewhere by their Yami D-Volvers. They might be finding the way to Trinity Server."  
  
"Big deal. Why do you want to go there?"  
  
"Have you ever been there?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Me either. And I wanna see it. So let's keep following them."  
  
"Well..." began Levelermon. "You have those two things called legs. Use them."  
  
"I don't recall asking for any witty comments." growled Hieshi, going to find his way back to ground level.  
  
- - -  
  
After about an hour of walking, a freezing Amara and Tori arrived at a warehouse near the bay. They looked at the frozen mass of water and then at the big warehouse when their D-Volvers stopped beeping altogether. The two girls with contrasting shades of brown hair looked at each other confusedly.  
  
"Uhh... this looks pleasant and all... but it's a dump." observed Tori, looking at the warehouse.  
  
"Well, go inside."  
  
"You go inside."  
  
The two girls looked at each other, nodded and both headed for the small door next to the huge storage door that led into the warehouse. It was already open.  
  
"Someone's inside." whispered Tori. "Do that mind scanning thing you do."  
  
"Alright." replied Amara. She concentrated for a second and shut her eyes. This was taking some practice, but she was getting used to it. First she shut out Tori's thoughts, so she couldn't be distracted by them. She picked up two thought waves from inside the warehouse.  
  
"Well?" asked Tori, poking Amara in the arm after she'd been silent for a minute.  
  
"They're... like us." said Amara, walking in the warehouse door.  
  
Jeska and Ray were inside. Ray was sitting on a crate and Jeska was pacing back and forth in the middle of the large building. Ray and Jeska both glanced at them, surprised.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" asked Jeska.  
  
"Amara... and Tori? From my PE class? You've got D-Volvers too!" exclaimed Ray. Amara and Tori held out their Yami D-Volvers in agreement. Jeska was not amused.  
  
"Greeeaaaat. I'm stuck with the happy crew."  
  
"The happy crew. Right." scoffed Tori. "What I'm wondering is why we've all been brought here. To meet each other?"  
  
Ray kicked his legs in the air from the crate he was sitting on in excitement.  
  
"This is awesome!" he exclaimed. "Now that you've all got D-Volvers too, I might actually have some friends!"  
  
"You're getting ahead of yourself, buddy." replied Jeska, rolling her eyes. The red-haired girl glanced over at a steel door on the other side of the warehouse. "Ray and I were wondering what that was for and we were arguing about who was gonna go in first when you bimbos showed up."  
  
Amara walked over to the door and tried to turn the handle on it. It didn't budge an inch. She looked next to the door and saw what looked like a hand scanner.  
  
"It's palm print activated." Amara told her three companions, who gathered behind her. "I don't think we can get in."  
  
"Sucks to that! I walked all the frickin way here and I want in that door!" shouted Jeska. She raised her hand in anger and her D-Volver was still in it. When it crossed paths with the scanner, the door clicked and unlocked.  
  
"Wah!" exclaimed Jeska, leaping back. Then she re-composed herself quickly after. "Hey, what do you know? I opened it..."  
  
"And now I'll be heading in there!" shouted a voice from behind the four of them. They all turned to see Hieshi standing there, tossing Levelermon up and down in his right hand like a ball.  
  
"Who are you?" asked Ray. "Are you another one of us?"  
  
"He is. His name is Hieshi, I've met him before." said Amara. "Did you get called here too?"  
  
Hieshi smirked and pointed at the four of them.  
  
"No, I followed you brainless fools. And I've observed all of you fighting and I'll have you know my partner could waste all of yours in an instant. So don't get in my way! I will get into Trinity Server!"  
  
Hieshi ran for the door but Amara was closer and dashed down the stairs first. Hieshi glared and dashed through after her.  
  
"Hey, wait for us!" shouted Tori, as she, Jeska and Ray ran through after the two of them.  
  
- - -  
  
"Get back here, Amara!" growled Hieshi. "I'm going to rip you apart if you get to Trinity Server before I do!"  
  
"You know, for someone who wants my alliance, you sure have a funny way of asking!" she shouted back, maintaining her distance ahead of him.  
  
Suddenly, Amara ran right into a huge empty room that looked like it was made of metal. The walls, floor, ceiling, everything. And all over each of those surfaces were hundreds of little red circles. She gasped and stopped in her tracks, that room not looking too friendly to her.  
  
"Holy crap..." she gasped, putting her hand over her mouth. Suddenly, Hieshi grabbed her by the arm and jerked her back. "Aah!"  
  
"Now I've got-- huh?" he gasped, as Amara flipped him over her shoulder and hurled him into the room. She giggled and brushed her arm off.  
  
"Sorry. That was a reflex." she said. "I am in karate, you know."  
  
"Amara, you alright?!" asked Tori, running up behind her. She nodded. Jeska and Tori gasped at the room they were looking into, while Ray simply leaned against the wall for air.  
  
"Augh... so much running..." he sighed. The girls rolled their eyes.  
  
"What the #%$ is this...?" asked Jeska, walking into the room slowly and glancing around her. The others followed and Hieshi stood up, his urge to fight them forgotten.  
  
"It looks like some sort of torture chamber..." said Hieshi, glancing around himself. "Oh #%$... these red circles might all be lasers! Or flamethrowers!"  
  
The others gasped and headed for the exit the second Hieshi made that revelation, but a steel door slammed shut in front of them! Ray kicked in it a vein attempt to open it.  
  
"We're locked in!" screamed Ray.  
  
"WHAT?!" yelled Hieshi. "No!"  
  
Suddenly all the red dots began glowing, sending a wave of heat through the room as they activated. The five Yami Chosen winced as they covered their eyes to avoid getting their retinas destroyed.  
  
"We're going to get fried!!!" screamed Amara.  
  
"No!" yelled Levelermon from Hieshi's pocket. "I'm sensing Digital energy! This is a transport mechanism!"  
  
"Like, another Digimon?!" asked Hieshi.  
  
The bright glow faded, and the five Yami Chosen glanced up to see a large Digimon standing right in front of Hieshi. The green goliath roared out and glanced down at Hieshi, a look of insanity in his eyes.  
  
"Oh #%$."  
  
Hieshi back flipped out of the way as the Digimon attempted to skewer him on its enormous horn!  
  
"What the hell is it?!" exclaimed Ray, frightened as all of the others were.  
  
"It's Tuskmon, an Adult level Digimon!" answered Levelermon.  
  
"Look at the size of him..." gasped Tori as Hieshi ran back to the wall to rejoin them. He chucked Levelermon directly at Tuskmon.  
  
"Take him down, Levelermon!!!"  
  
"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!!"  
  
The large metal dragon appeared and slammed face-first into Tuskmon! Both of them were knocked to the ground, but Tuskmon still rivaled Dyactoralmon in size. Jeska looked around the room and glared at Tuskmon.  
  
"This was a trap set up by someone!" she snarled. "Why else would this room be the size of a freaking coliseum?!"  
  
"Who cares?!" replied Tori. "Call your partners!"  
  
Amara, Tori, Ray and Jeska called Crystalmon, Salamon, DemiDevimon and Magemon respectively. The four Child Digimon were given instructions, but Hieshi told them all to stop.  
  
"Stop!" he yelled. "I can handle this freak of nature by myself! You'll only get yourselves hurt!"  
  
"I beg to differ." snapped Amara back. "You're not so sure of yourself, you're just arrogant. And don't say that's ridiculous like you're about to, cuz I can read your mind."  
  
"You can read minds?" asked Jeska and Ray at the same time, this being news to them. Hieshi stomped his foot down in defiance.  
  
"Just stay out of this!" he growled.  
  
"Fine, get wasted. See if we care." agreed Jeska, crossing her arms.  
  
The other four held their partners back for the moment while Dyactoralmon and Tuskmon pulled their hulking bodies off the floor of the transport chamber. They roared out and charged each other again.  
  
"He's about to use a tusk attack! Take to the air!" yelled Crystalmon. Dyactoralmon did as told and Tuskmon's attack sent him tumbling to the ground. Hieshi glared at Crystalmon for helping, but decided to let it slide.  
  
"FLAME CANNON!!!"  
  
Dyactoralmon blasted a fireball at Tuskmon, hitting him right in the stomach before he could right himself. Tuskmon pulled himself up, looking like he barely felt the hit.  
  
"Dude, that's some armor!" exclaimed Ray. "DemiDevimon, you jump in!"  
  
"DemiDevimon Shinka... ICEDEVIMON!!!"  
  
The fallen angel flew at Tuskmon before Tuskmon even knew he was there.  
  
"FROZEN CLAW!!!" screamed IceDevimon, slashing Tuskmon across the side of the head and sending him sliding across the room. Tuskmon, being a big lizard and cold blooded, was extremely affected by the cold.  
  
"He's weak, finish him now!" shouted Crystalmon, still scanning Tuskmon's mind. Dyactoralmon moved in for the kill.  
  
"DRAGON BLASTER!!!"  
  
Dyactoralmon unloaded two large cannons from hidden compartments in his arms and pointed them right at Tuskmon's head. The black metal dragon then blew his head clean off! The rest of Tuskmon's body broke up and deleted.  
  
"Yeah! We did it!" cheered Ray.  
  
"You mean I did it." replied Hieshi, annoyed. "All you did was get in my way."  
  
"Are you joking?" asked Ray. "IceDevimon and Crystalmon saved your--"  
  
"Uh, look!" shouted Tori, pointing forward into the room. The other four looked where she was pointing, past IceDevimon and Dyactoralmon to see all the little red circles were starting to glow again.  
  
"Ugh, what now?!" exclaimed Hieshi.  
  
All of the Yami Chosen and Digimon were forced to cover their eyes again as the room was filled another bright red glow. They uncovered them to see an Digimon far bigger than Dyactoralmon standing there! He was red and had four arms, along with a large shell covering his back and a gigantic horn protruding from his head.  
  
"Shit! IT'S HUGE!!!" screamed Tori, intimidated. "What the hell is it?!"  
  
"MegaKabuterimon, a Perfect Digimon!" yelled Magemon, as to answer her question. "We're in it now!"  
  
"What's a Perfect Digimon?" asked Jeska.  
  
"The level after Adult." Crystalmon informed them. "None of us can reach that level yet!"  
  
"He still won't be able to stop Dyactoralmon!" growled Hieshi in denial.  
  
Dyactoralmon and IceDevimon stared up at MegaKabuterimon, who glanced down at them. IceDevimon and Dyactoralmon both charged up their attacks.  
  
"DRAGON BLASTER!!!" yelled Dyactoralmon, firing the cannons upwards at the large insect.  
  
"TUNDRA FREEZE!!!" screamed IceDevimon, blasting ice from his wings in the same direction.  
  
The two attacks swirled together into an energy ice blast and hit MegaKabuterimon right in the chest! The bug staggered backwards, but didn't even fall!  
  
"No way!" exclaimed IceDevimon. "That's impossible!"  
  
"That was my most powerful attack!" added Dyactoralmon.  
  
The two Adult Digimon recoiled as MegaKabuterimon began to charge energy in his horn. He leaned over so it was pointing at the two of them.  
  
"My turn now, weaklings! HORN BUSTER!!!"  
  
MegaKabuterimon hit them both dead-on with his electrical burst, knocking them through the coliseum-sized room and sending them both crashing into the wall hard. The two Adults collapsed and groaned weakly, trying to stand up. But they both collapsed shortly after  
  
"Need our help now, Mr. Self-Confident?" asked Amara, sassily. Hieshi simply grumbled in response.  
  
"Well he's getting it!" shouted Tori. "Because that bug is looking at US now! Evolutionize yourself, Salamon!"  
  
"And you, Magemon." added Jeska.  
  
"Salamon Shinka... KAZEMON!!!"  
  
"Magemon Shinka... TAWNOSMON!!!"  
  
Hieshi glanced at the two new Adults, and then they all looked at Amara.  
  
"Well?" asked Jeska. "Evolve now, dork!"  
  
"Crystalmon... can't do that yet..." sighed Amara, shamefully.  
  
"Oh, that's REAL helpful!" shouted Jeska.  
  
"Hey, I can still tell you what MegaKabuterimon is about to do!" snapped Crystalmon back, running onto the battlefield to get a better hold on MegaKabuterimon's mind.  
  
"More insects for me to squash..." growled MegaKabuterimon, looking at Crystalmon, Tawnosmon and Kazemon.  
  
"Oh, was that supposed by a joke?" asked Kazemon, mockingly.  
  
"Yeah, LOTS of insects!" shouted Tawnosmon. "ASTRAL PROJECTION!!!"  
  
Tawnosmon disappeared and in his place... 26 Tawnosmon appeared! They all flew about the room, surrounding MegaKabuterimon.  
  
"Uh... I think my glasses need to be cleaned..." gasped Ray. "I'm seeing 26- tuple."  
  
"He's an illusionist. Only one of them is real." replied Hieshi, figuring it out pretty quickly, although still amazed by the maneuver. "And that's not a word."  
  
(Kazemon, I'm going to tell you when MegaKabuterimon is going to attack, and where he's going to attack. Make sure you get behind him WHILE he attacks!) Crystalmon projected to Kazemon.  
  
Got it!  
  
"Grrr... HORN BUSTER!!!"  
  
(The Tawnosmon projections near the roof!)  
  
The projections there were incinerated and Kazemon had flown up behind MegaKabuterimon while he did that. She charged up a cyclone in her hands.  
  
"HURRICANE GALE!!!" screamed Kazemon, blasting MegaKabuterimon in the back of the neck. He hissed and went to turn around, but more Tawnosmon projections got in his way, confusing him.  
  
(Holy crap! Look out!)  
  
The warning didn't come fast enough as MegaKabuterimon outstretched all of his arms and span around in a circle, smashing through a bunch of Tawnosmon projections and hitting the real Tawnosmon! Tawnosmon was flung to the floor, unconscious.  
  
"That's not good..." gasped Jeska.  
  
MegaKabuterimon turned around and faced Kazemon, who shrieked.  
  
"Uh, hi. I'll be leaving now." said Kazemon.  
  
"HORN BUSTER!!!"  
  
Kazemon was blasted and smashed into the wall, collapsing like those before her. MegaKabuterimon then turned to face his only remaining opponent: Crystalmon.  
  
"You die now... puny Digimon!"  
  
"No, Crystalmon! You have to evolve!" yelled Amara. Her D-Volver sent out a signal that made Crystalmon begin to glow and change form.  
  
"Well that seemed to work." said Tori. "But will it help?"  
  
"Crystalmon Shinka... RUBYMON!!!"  
  
Crystalmon transformed into a six-foot tall humanoid female Digimon. She had shining red hair that draped down to her shoulders and although her face looked like that of a human, her body from the neck down was entirely made of ruby. Or at least it was a ruby bodysuit.  
  
"Wow... she's... beautiful." gasped Amara. (Heh, Crystalmon evolved to protect me. I didn't think she cared...)  
  
"HORN BUSTER!!!"  
  
Rubymon leapt to the side of the blast, knowing where he was going to shoot it with her mind-reading ability. He attempted to stomp on her, but she leapt back out of the way. Then she hopped on top of his foot.  
  
"RUBY BLAZE!!!" screamed Rubymon, pointing her arms right at his ankle and pouring a stream of magma right into the large insect's ankle joint. As she anticipated, the blast severed his foot, and toppled MegaKabuterimon! He screamed and snarled in pain as his severed foot deleted.  
  
"Geez... such gratuitous violence!" gasped Amara.  
  
"NOW DYACTORALMON!!!" screamed Hieshi.  
  
The metal dragon was up again and took to the air. He flew in at MegaKabuterimon, but the insect fired another Horn Buster at him! Rubymon jumped in the way of the blast!  
  
"What the--" exclaimed Hieshi. "What is she doing?!"  
  
Rubymon held her palm out before gravity tugged her back down to the floor and absorbed MegaKabuterimon's attack! Once on the ground, she pointed her palm at MegaKabuterimon, who was still laying on the floor.  
  
"RUBY REFLECTION!!!" she yelled, blasting MegaKabuterimon with his own attack and knocking him onto his stomach. Dyactoralmon then landed on his shell and pointed his cannons at MegaKabuterimon's head.  
  
"So much decapitation today." said Dyactoralmon. "DRAGON BLASTER!!!"  
  
MegaKabuterimon was deleted and all the Yami Chosen sighed with relief.  
  
"Hoo, we really cut that one close..." gasped Tori.  
  
"I don't remember you doing anything specific." muttered Jeska.  
  
"Yeah, because your partner didn't last long enough to protect mine!" snapped Tori back.  
  
"Heeey, let's not fight." said Ray, coming between the two. "If anyone deserves credit, it's Hieshi and Amara! They saved our asses!"  
  
"See, Hieshi? You're a member of the team now." said Amara, mostly to annoy Hieshi.  
  
"Ugh... kick me please." he sighed in defeat.  
  
"I just might..." began Amara, but she trailed off as another door on the far wall opened. "... looks like someone wants us to keep going down."  
  
"I say we go back up." said Ray, noticing the door behind them had opened too. "Why risk getting killed again?"  
  
Hieshi and Amara were already walking for the new door, ignoring Ray. Ray gave them a look like they were insane.  
  
"Tori? Jeska?"  
  
"... I'm not backing out now." said Jeska, almost entranced by the new door.  
  
"... me either."  
  
Tori and Jeska followed Hieshi and Amara, and Ray reluctantly followed them. All the partners returned to their Child stages and Hieshi picked up Levelermon on the way by, as the others walked alongside their own partners.  
  
- - -  
  
Upon reaching the bottom, they had entered the laboratory mentioned earlier. They saw one man standing there, waiting for them. It was Irvine.  
  
"Greetings." said Irvine.  
  
"You! You're Matt Irvine!" exclaimed Jeska at once. Amara and Hieshi didn't recognize him, but he recognized them.  
  
"Yes, I am. The one who gave... most of you your Yami D-Volvers. Hieshi's appearance was not expected. Care to explain it to me, boy?"  
  
"I'll explain nothing." replied Hieshi. "Do you know how to get into Trinity Server?"  
  
"Maybe. Follow me, you five."  
  
As the five of them and their partners followed Irvine down a corridor, he began to speak again.  
  
"After completing the test in our transport room, you all got a very special present." said Irvine.  
  
"So you made those Digimon attack us..." gasped Ray.  
  
"Did you upload them all?" asked DemiDevimon, who was perched on Ray's shoulder. Irvine nodded.  
  
"Yes, Tuskmon and MegaKabuterimon took alot more time and were tougher to upload than you four Child's... and you defeated them. Alone, none of you could have done that. Not even you, Hieshi."  
  
"Hmph." was all he got out of Hieshi.  
  
"So that was meant to assess our skills as a team." guessed Amara, not able to read Irvine's mind for some reason. "It sure worked."  
  
"Yes... you five will be an unstoppable force. Unstoppable enough to kill Lee and his friends."  
  
"What about this gift you were talking about?" asked Jeska, interested in what she got.  
  
"It's a very complicated gift but it will allow each of you --except for Hieshi, since his Yami D-Volver isn't registered under our computers-- to create one Digimon each to do your bidding. And only one."  
  
"How?" asked Tori.  
  
"Just hold your D-Volver up to a human of your selection. Concentrate on the Digimon you want and the human will morph into it. It's a very ingenious process. Remember, you can only do it once, so choose carefully."  
  
Amara, Ray, Tori and Jeska all glanced at their D-Volvers, amazed.  
  
"So what is it you want to show us?" asked Hieshi, slightly annoyed.  
  
Irvine led them into the main console room and sat down in the comfy chair in front of the main screen. The five Yami Chosen stood behind him and looked as he turned the main screen on.  
  
"Alright, now you know I want you to kill the Hikari Chosen, but I've never really told you why. Watch this screen."  
  
{{{FLASHBACK}}}  
  
We see a scene from a year ago in Desiree's grungy laboratory that was up on North Mountain. James and Desiree are laying on the floor, James having just been killed and Desiree stuck by a Shadow. Meanwhile, Arik, Ace, Lee, Earnest, Alison, Alex, Nathan and Kevin are gathered around the laptop whom was the guardian of their server at the time.  
  
"We have to go to Desolate Server to rescue our partners!" shouted Ace.  
  
"How? None of you can even fight." said Lee. "I'll go alone. I don't want you to get hurt.  
  
"Screw that! Jijimon and Musyamon are there and we intend to get them back!" defied Nathan. "You're not stopping us from going."  
  
"Yeah, come on Lee. Let us come." pleaded Alex, hanging off his arm. Ali crossed her arms and looked into the air with a huff.  
  
"I don't even know how to get there..." sighed Lee.  
  
"Well, the laptop does." said Kevin as he and Earnest stared into it's screen. The other six gathered around them.  
  
{YES I DO.} said the laptop. {I'LL TRANSFER US ALL THERE WITH MY GUARDIAN POWERS.}  
  
The laptop began to flash with a brilliant light, and the six Chosen, Kokuwamon and the laptop disappeared.  
  
{{{END FLASHBACK}}}  
  
"Wow... so they go to go there..." gasped Amara.  
  
"Yes. But when the guardian transported them there, she had to give up some of her guardian code into each of them." explained Irvine. "Even James was affected, since he was revived after the Server reboot. Now that guardians cease to exist, the Hikari Chosen still do, blocking Trinity Server almost completely off from us."  
  
"What do you mean by almost?" asked Hieshi.  
  
"One of them: Desiree, lost her D-Volver a while later. It was destroyed somehow. The barrier was weakened, but barely. It is easy to get things out... but hard to get in. We can only send things in that would take a small amount of data. Like our spy cameras we've placed. Or small insects. Watch."  
  
Irvine tapped a jar containing an ant next to him. He then did some code cracking on the computer and the ant disappeared.  
  
"Where'd it go?" wondered Tori.  
  
They all looked up at the monitor to see the ant materialize on a small patch of land that looks like a desert.  
  
"Unfortunately, he won't live long."  
  
A club smashed down on top of the ant, killing it. The camera panned up to show an Orgemon standing there. It began to inspect the club to see what it had killed. Irvine shut the monitor off.  
  
"So... the more of those nine Hikari Chosen we destroy..." began Tori.  
  
"... the weaker the barrier becomes." finished Hieshi in realization.  
  
"But what's in it for us?" asked Jeska.  
  
"Well..." began Irvine. "You get to keep your Digimon partners, which I think is an amazing gift. But in addition, we'll also take you all to Trinity Server with us."  
  
"You keep referring to yourself as 'we'." pointed out Ray. "May I ask why?"  
  
"I have three colleagues who wish to remain anonymous. They are members of your community, and most of you or the Hikari Chosen already know them." explained Irvine. "But they do not want their identities revealed so as not to jeopardize their public status."  
  
"So... let's get wasting some Hikari Chosen!" shouted Jeska. "What's the way out of here?!"  
  
"There's an elevator at the end of this hallway."  
  
Tori, Hieshi, Ray, Jeska and Amara turned and left Irvine. But Amara stopped and faced him again.  
  
"Do you know how I got my... my gift?" she asked, curiously. "It's... scary."  
  
"All will become clear in due time Amara. Ask me again when Trinity Server is open." he replied, hoping to get her a bit more motivated with that promise.  
  
Amara nodded and followed the others down to the elevator. They all gathered in the large elevator and left the warehouse. Amara, Tori and Ray went to walk back to campus together, while Jeska and Hieshi went their own ways.  
  
"Hieshi... we aren't really going to work with them, are we?" asked Levelermon.  
  
"For now." he replied. "Once Trinity Server opens, I'll have no use for them or Irvine anymore. But let's never think of this again, for if Amara were to find out..."  
  
"Aye aye. My lips are sealed."  
  
"Good... now let's thrash my brother and those other losers..." 


	8. Wildfire

"Make a Digimon... I can make a Digimon..." repeated Ray to himself, pacing back and forth in his dorm room. DemiDevimon watched the brown haired boy walk around in circles.  
  
"Could you stop that Ray? I'm starting to get dizzy."  
  
"Er, sorry, DemiDevimon. But Irvine never told us if it kills the human when we make the Digimon out of them."  
  
"Who cares? We just gotta destroy the Hikari Chosen by whatever means necessary." DemiDevimon reminded him. "Aren't you going on a camping trip tomorrow?"  
  
"Uh-huh."  
  
"Won't some of the Hikaris be there?"  
  
"Yes. Nathan and Ace."  
  
"Well then there you go." said DemiDevimon. "Don't wussy out on me."  
  
"I won't..." he replied. Then he narrowed his eyes with determination. "I'll get them no matter what."  
  
- - -  
  
On Monday Ace and Nathan were in their house, packing two large bags of equipment on the top floor. Nathan approached the stairs and looked down nervously with his black eyes.  
  
"Uh... Ace. We're going to far if we try and lug these down there."  
  
Ace had a simple solution. He took his bag and Nathan's bag and threw them down the stairs. Nathan almost screamed.  
  
"ACE! What the hell are you doing!?"  
  
"Uh, improving productivity?"  
  
Lee, Earnest and Arik were on the couch downstairs, conversing about matters of the Digital type when the two bags came crashing down the stairs, sounding like an elephant just died when they landed. The three of them glanced at Nathan as he came rushing down the stairs to check if anything was broken.  
  
"So... how exactly can we get our partners back?" asked Earnest of Lee. Earnest had been kept out of the loop most of the time and Lee and Arik were only beginning to fill him in.  
  
"We don't know." replied Arik. "Ace, Lee and James's partners escaped when the scientists were uploading data."  
  
"Damn it..." growled Earnest. "That's not very helpful."  
  
"Yeah, well you two aren't very helpful." said Lee. "Just try and stay out of the action until you get them back."  
  
"Whatever..." replied Earnest, annoyed. "It better be soon. I'm going through withdrawl."  
  
Arik glanced up at Nathan and Ace, who were just preparing to leave.  
  
"Freeloaders allowed?" asked Arik, walking over to them. Ace threw his bag into Arik's arms, almost knocking Arik over.  
  
"Only if you carry the bag."  
  
Arik shrugged and followed the two of them out the door, carrying Ace's bag. Lee turned back to Earnest.  
  
"So the laptop lost it's sentiency?"  
  
"Yeah. About a month ago." answered Earnest. "It just stopped. Which means the Guardian code isn't in it anymore. The Guardian likely returned to it's original form."  
  
"So then what'd protecting our Server?" asked Lee. "We need some Guardian code to protect us..."  
  
Earnest and Lee thought for a minute and then looked at each other in realization.  
  
"WE ARE!!!" exclaimed Lee and Earnest at the same time.  
  
"It makes sense! That's why the Hikari chosen-- or more specifically, the scientists-- are trying to kill us!" shouted Lee.  
  
"To weaken the code and escape..."  
  
"Well, Ernie, as much as I'd love to stick around and chat. I've got a date with my girlfriend." said Lee, getting up off the couch.  
  
"I thought you said she was avoiding you."  
  
"She was until I gave her the most fricken expensive ring she'd ever seen." replied Lee. "Although she's still acting a little strangely..."  
  
- - -  
  
Later that day, Ace's PE class was at the foot of Mount Humiliation, as Wilson called it. This would be the setting for their hike. Each kid was freezing only wearing their PE strip, but they managed to tough it out and participate.  
  
"Alright, PE class, this is it!" shouted Coach Wilson, pacing back and forth in front of the line-up of 12 students. "The ten of you and your two guests who were man and woman enough to come out here are about to wish you never did!"  
  
Arik was one of the guests he was talking about. Another one of the guests was a kid brought by a different student. Arik stood between Nathan and Ace, although he was a little shorter than both of them  
  
Nathan was just happy Coach Wilson wasn't commenting on his eyes. Coach Wilson always called him 'blacky' as a nickname and it ticked him off. Nathan didn't get along well with most of the class because of that, but some people didn't really seem to care. The ones who did care really gave him a rough time though.  
  
"Now! I want you all to get into teams of three!"  
  
Ace, Nathan and Arik were obviously one team, and Ray, Amara and Tori were another. There were two last teams comprised of other students.  
  
"Now! We need to set up camp halfway up the mountain! See how far up that is!?"  
  
All the students glanced up and multiple groans of annoyance and dissatisfaction ensued.  
  
"Oh come on, wusses. It isn't that hard." said Ace to everyone in general.  
  
"Speak for yourself." replied Ray, who wasn't the best athlete in the world.  
  
"Ray, don't lower yourself by speaking to such scum." said Tori, turning him away from Ace. Ace stuck his tongue out at her and she did the same to him.  
  
"Oh. Maturity at it's finest." sighed Amara, massaging her temple in frustration. Amara was not pleased by this PE trip, but she was pleased at the chance to flex her muscles and make the other students look bad. If there was anything she'd love, it'd be reaching the top first.  
  
"Alright. I'll be taking the school helicopt--"  
  
"The school has a helicopter?!" exclaimed Ray. "Can I take it with you please? I really don't think I'm cut out for this Coach Wilson..."  
  
"No, you climb like all the other students if you want the marks." said Coach Wilson. "I already excused you from class the other day when you weren't well, don't expect to receive favors throughout the entire course, Mr. Stryker."  
  
Coach Wilson wished the students luck and they all dashed for the mountains. Ray glared at Coach Wilson as he walked to the helicopter.  
  
"Ray, come on!" shouted Tori. Ray snapped out of it and followed his partners.  
  
"Let's try and lose the pack!" suggested Ray.  
  
"Just try and keep up." replied Amara, who was already a good deal ahead of them.  
  
- - -  
  
A good twenty minutes of running later, Amara, Ray and Tori came to stop and leaned up against a few trees to catch their breath. Tori took the time to brush the snow off of her.  
  
"Ugh, this snow is making me all wet..." she groaned. She then looked at Ray. "Don't think anything."  
  
"I'm not."  
  
"Yes you are." said Amara. Ray groaned.  
  
"That is such an annoying power." he sighed. "Put it to use and find out how far we are ahead of everyone else."  
  
Amara concentrated for a minute, attempting to read the minds of everyone on the mountain.  
  
"Uhm... two teams went around the other side... they're nowhere near us. The team of Hikari's isn't far behind us..." Amara told them.  
  
"Like, right below us?" asked Tori, intrigued.  
  
"Yes. I believe so."  
  
"Hmmm."  
  
Tori called Salamon there with her D-Volver and relayed instructions to the small puppy Digimon. Ray and Amara just looked at her oddly.  
  
"Salamon Shinka... Kazemon!!!"  
  
"What are you doing?" asked Ray.  
  
"Winning." replied Tori.  
  
The fairy Digimon walked down to a tree and reared her foot back.  
  
"HURRICANE KICK!!!"  
  
She kicked right through the tree, breaking half of it off and sending it tumbling down the mountain. Ray and Amara were still just staring at her.  
  
"Doesn't that seem a little unnecessary?" inquired Amara.  
  
"We gotta kill them anyway. This way we don't actually have to uh... get graphic about it. I'm not a big fan of that."  
  
"I'm not a big fan of killing them..." sighed Amara. "Except I want to make Lee pay for what he said to me."  
  
"Well I wanna make Ace pay. So bite me."  
  
"Let's shut up and keep going. I'm starting to freeze again." said Ray, hiking upwards. "Stupid Coach Wilson..."  
  
- - -  
  
Down about a mile, Ace, Nathan and Arik were dashing upwards through the snow as well. None of the trio was any happy about it, either.  
  
"This is making me tired and weepy!" shouted Ace between breaths.  
  
"Why weepy?" asked Arik.  
  
"Because I can't feel my legs!!!"  
  
"Oh yeah?" asked Nathan. "Well I can't feel my-er, never mind."  
  
"What the hell is that?" gasped Arik, stopping in his stride. Ace and Nathan stopped too, and they could hear a faint rumbling in the distance ahead of them. They exchanged glances of uncertainty.  
  
"An earthquake maybe?" guessed Ace.  
  
"Yeah maybe... OR MAYBE IT'S A FORTY FOOT TREE ROLLING DIRECTLY AT US!!!" screamed Nathan.  
  
"Pshaw." scoffed Ace. "There's no forty foot--BWAH! HOLY CRAP!"  
  
The tree was barreling down at them with an amazing speed, smashing other trees over in it's path! Ace, Arik and Nathan screamed. Ace acted quickly and pulled his D-Volver out of his shorts pocket and summoned DemiTyrannomon to the scene.  
  
"Ace? I thought you were on a camping-"  
  
"Evolve! NOW!"  
  
Without even questioning his partner. DemiTyrannomon did as told.  
  
"DemiTyrannomon Shinka... DRAGONMON!!!"  
  
Dragonmon stretched his tail out and all three Hikari Chosen leapt onto it, clinging for dear life as Dragonmon flapped his wings and took to the air. The tree smashed its way down past them and plummeted to the base of the mountain.  
  
"That was so close." gasped Nathan. "And I think I've got a pretty good idea of who did that..."  
  
Ace narrowed his eyes as the three of them climbed upwards onto the black dragon's back.  
  
"Well let's play by their rules then."  
  
- - -  
  
Up ahead, Tori (now carrying Salamon), Ray and Amara were climbing up a small ledge that was about 5 feet tall. Amara got up first and leaned down to pull Ray up.  
  
"Hey losers! We can cheat too!" shouted Ace from above. Amara glanced up, dropping Ray down the ledge and onto his butt.  
  
"Hey! Amara! What gives?!" exclaimed Ray. The three of them then noticed Dragonmon soar past.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!"  
  
Dragonmon shot the ground right in front of Amara and knocked her backwards. She crashed down on top of Ray. Tori sweat dropped.  
  
"See you at the finish line!" shouted Nathan, laughing. Amara glared and wiped the snow off her face.  
  
"Now I'm pissed..."  
  
"Amara, you're crushing my stomach."  
  
"Shut up, Ray."  
  
- - -  
  
Ace, Nathan and Arik soared up the mountain in the direction of the finish line on top of Dragonmon. Arik poked Ace in the back.  
  
"What do you want, Arik?"  
  
"Coach Wilson might get suspicious if we get there too quickly... especially if we're riding a huge black dragon. Land this plane."  
  
Dragonmon set down shortly after and reverted to his Child form of DemiTyrannomon. The four of them then began hiking again.  
  
"According to our map..." began Nathan, looking it over. "We're only about one mile from the finish line."  
  
"Good," said Ace. "There's no way they can catch up to us now!"  
  
"I wouldn't be too sure about that..." gasped Arik, pointing behind them.  
  
"HURRICANE GALE!!!"  
  
The three of them and DemiTyrannomon were struck by a large wind cyclone and knocked over. Amara, Tori, Ray and Kazemon dashed past them while they were down.  
  
"Now who's the losers?" shouted Ray.  
  
"You in a second!" snapped Ace back. "DemiTyrannomon, evolve again!"  
  
"I can't, Ace..." sighed the little red Digimon. "It's too cold out... and I am a lizard, remember? I don't work well in this environment.  
  
"Oh NOW we bring up environmental weaknesses!" groaned Ace, exasperated. "Let's run for it!"  
  
Ace scooped up DemiTyrannomon and the three of them chased after the Yami Chosen, who were only a few meters away. Kazemon turned around to blast them with wind again.  
  
"DEMI BLAST!!!" shouted DemiTyrannomon, shooting her in the face with a fireball! She staggered backwards and Nathan body-checked her into the bushes.  
  
"Sorry sister, but we're winning this!" shouted Nathan.  
  
"Ray! Bring out IceDevimon!" ordered Amara. "I'll get Rubymon!"  
  
Amara and Ray reached for their D-Volver's, but Tori stopped them.  
  
"Don't! The campsite is just up there! Someone will see!"  
  
"We'll just have to book it!" shouted Amara.  
  
"Damn it! They're going to win!" growled Ace. He dropped DemiTyrannomon. "Demi, wait here! Come on guys!"  
  
Ace, Nathan and Arik picked up the pace, and their Yami Chosen rivals did the same. When it clearly looked like the Yami Chosen were going to win... they saw another team had made it up already! Ray, Amara and Tori stopped in their tracks, as did Ace, Nathan and Arik.  
  
"WHAT?!" exclaimed all six of them at once. Coach Wilson saw them and walked over to them.  
  
"Ah, good to see you six finally made it. We were beginning to think you were never going to get here."  
  
All six of them just stared at Coach Wilson and then fell over.  
  
"I never want to do that again..." whined Tori.  
  
"Same here..." groaned Ace.  
  
Ace and Tori looked at each other.  
  
"Hey, we were actually getting along there for a second."  
  
"Yeah, we were."  
  
"I didn't like it."  
  
"Me either."  
  
- - -  
  
Later that night, Ray awoke in his tent. He was sleeping in a tent by himself and pulled his sleeping bag off of his body. He exited the tent and made his way across the campground, glancing at the 7 other tents there. He located Coach Wilson's tent and walked over to it.  
  
"Now you're going to pay..."  
  
Ray unzipped the grey tent and crawled in. He pointed his D-Volver at Coach Wilson and concentrated hard.  
  
"Become a Digimon..."  
  
- - -  
  
Somewhere in Trinity Server, a Meramon was walking along some grassy plains, enjoying the sun. The sun powered him up and he was feeling fresh as ever.  
  
Suddenly, a ray of light shot down from the heavens and struck him! He screamed for a short time as his data dissolved into the light beam.  
  
"What the heck is that...?" gasped Bouncemon, who saw the light beam.  
  
- - -  
  
Coach Wilson was transformed into the mighty Meramon. The flaming adult Digimon stood up, burning through the tent instantly. Ray backed away, awed by what he had just done.  
  
"This is awesome!" exclaimed Ray. "Now go kill the Hikari Chosen!"  
  
Meramon glanced at Ray for a second, then decided to ignore him and walked along the mountainside, looking at the forest.  
  
"Huh? No, they're that way!"  
  
Meramon leapt into the forest, completely disobeying Ray! Ray saw a tree begin to catch ablaze in the distance where Meramon landed.  
  
"Oh no... he's going to burn the whole forest!" exclaimed Ray. "What have I done...?"  
  
Meramon knocked the tree over and laughed wickedly as it burned. He turned and glared at a large cluster of trees in the distance.  
  
"Grrr... FIREBALL!!!" he screamed, launching a ball of fire from his fist. The fireball connected with the trees and they began to go up in flames as well!  
  
Ray and IceDevimon ran down near Meramon, who was laughing insanely still, happy to be causing such mindless destruction. Ray and IceDevimon looked at him in disgust.  
  
"Look at him. He's got no idea what he's doing," said IceDevimon, disgusted. "Burning this forest and killing us as well is not very productive."  
  
"You don't say..." began Ray, sarcastically. "Go own him!"  
  
IceDevimon dove at Meramon and stretched his claw backwards. He brought it down right on the flaming maniac.  
  
"FROZEN CLAW!!!"  
  
IceDevimon slashed Meramon across the face and sent Meramon crashing backwards through a tree, setting it on fire as well. IceDevimon, being made of ice, felt the effects of it as well.  
  
"Argh... Ray... I'm not well-suited for this battle! Go call on Amara and Tori!"  
  
Ray turned and ran back for the campsite as Meramon got up again and laughed at IceDevimon, who snarled.  
  
"TUNDRA FREEZE!!!" screamed IceDevimon, flapping ice out of his wings at Meramon. Meramon simply stood there, unphazed and still grinning.  
  
"FIREBALL!!!"  
  
Meramon shot his attack right through IceDevimon's and hit the ice demon in the chest! IceDevimon was flung backwards and collapsed due to the heat. Meramon grinned and went to begin his destruction again.  
  
Meanwhile, Ray had made it back to the campsite and went running for Amara and Tori's tent. But then he stopped as a thought occurred to him.  
  
(If I tell Amara and Tori how bad I screwed this up, I'll be completely humiliated! I can't let them know! There must be another way...)  
  
- - -  
  
IceDevimon leapt up and ran at Meramon again, but Meramon blasted him point- blank with a Fireball and downed him once more! IceDevimon groaned weakly and reverted to his Child form of DemiDevimon.  
  
"Now I'll... kill you..." growled Meramon, stomping toward DemiDevimon, who was laying helpless on the ground.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!" screamed Dragonmon, blasting a fireball at Meramon. It hit the ground next to Meramon and sent him crashing to the ground. The black dragon landed right next to him and pinned Meramon to the ground with his tail!  
  
"I think you've had enough fun for today..." growled Dragonmon.  
  
Meramon simply smirked in response. He pointed his arms up at Dragonmon's head.  
  
"FIREBALL!!!"  
  
Dragonmon was blasted directly in the head and staggered backwards in pain. Meramon grabbed him by the tail and hurled him through a bunch of trees!  
  
"No way!" gasped Ace at the sight of his partner's falling. "That guy is feeding off his own flames! He's too powerful!"  
  
Ray, Nathan and Arik were subsequently stunned by that maneuver.  
  
"Where did this freak come from, anyway?!" exclaimed Nathan. "He's not someone's partner, is he?"  
  
"No... I created him..." growled Ray, ashamed of himself. Nathan, Arik and Ace all glanced at the short Yami Chosen.  
  
"You what!?" shouted Arik.  
  
"How the hell did you do that?" asked Nathan.  
  
"It doesn't matter. We have to stop him.  
  
"Well, okay. Here's the plan..." began Ace. "Go get Amara and Tori. Kazemon can funnel all this fire out of here with her wind attacks while Dragonmon and Rubymon defeat him."  
  
"But-"  
  
"Ray, this is our lives here! Suck it up and go get-hell, I'll go get them!" shouted Ace, turning and running back to the campsite. Arik, Nathan and Ray looked to see Dragonmon come barreling back in Meramon's direction!  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!"  
  
This time the fire blast hit Meramon dead-on... which was a big mistake on Dragonmon's part. The fire only served to power him up!  
  
"Oh crap. That's not good," observed Nathan.  
  
Meramon leapt into the air and delivered an uppercut to Dragonmon's jaw! He then blasted Dragonmon away again with a much more powered up Fireball!  
  
"We're doomed!" sighed Arik. "Tori and Amara aren't going to get here fast enough!"  
  
"Arik!" shouted a small voice. A voice very familiar to Arik. His jaw dropped as he whipped his D-Volver out of the pocket of his cargo pants and saw an LCD image on Bouncemon on it.  
  
"Oh my god! Are you for real?!" exclaimed Arik as Bouncemon leapt into his arms. The little LCD soccer ball bounced up and down repeatedly before emerging from the D-Volver and landing on the ground next to Arik.  
  
"I look real don't I?  
  
"How did you get back here?!"  
  
"Does it matter?" asked Bouncemon. "Let's take this guy!"  
  
"Right!" agreed Arik, pulling out his D-Volver.  
  
"Bouncemon Shinka..."  
  
The small red Digimon began to morph his form until he turned into what looked like a black Infermon, but covered in spikes and with wheels replacing legs.  
  
"... RACERMON!!!"  
  
The Adult Digimon revved his engine and shot forward at high speed, heading straight for Meramon! Meramon charged up more fire in his hands and launched it at his aggressor!  
  
"VORTEX SPRAY!!!" screamed Racermon, firing an energy blast from his mouth, which cancelled out Meramon's fire attack. He then slammed on the brakes and skidded right beneath Meramon's feet, knocking him flat onto his face!  
  
"Yeah!" cheered Arik. Suddenly, Arik, Nathan and Ray noticed a huge wind storm over come them. Kazemon was flying above the forest and pressing large gusts down into it, suffocating the fire and ultimately weakening Meramon.  
  
"Finish him off now!" shouted Kazemon from above.  
  
Racermon retracted his head and wheels into his shell and began to spin around in a circle rapidly. He shot himself forward at Meramon, his body brimming with electricity.  
  
"LIGHTNING SAW!!!"  
  
Racermon slid right through Meramon, hacking the fiery Digimon in half. Meramon broke up and deleted... then all the gathering Chosen gasped as they saw Coach Wilson fall to the ground, unconscious.  
  
"What the hell..." gasped Ace, who had run back down to join them. "Coach Wilson!"  
  
Nathan, Ace and Arik ran to their coach's aid. Ray turned to leave when he saw Tori standing there, arms crossed.  
  
"Ray, I thought we agreed not to use up our Digimon ability until we fully understood it." scolded the sleepy yet annoyed female.  
  
"Well now we understand it." replied Ray. "It's uncontrollable."  
  
Ray brushed past Tori and headed back for the campsite. Tori smirked as she watched Ace and his friends help the Coach up.  
  
"Maybe it is... but I'm still gonna get Ace with it..."  
  
- - -  
  
Early next morning, Coach Wilson awoke asleep in his tent with no memory of what happened the previous night. He then began to prepare the students for their next drill. Ace, Arik and Nathan stood together at the far end of the group of twelve.  
  
"That was real lucky Bouncemon came back to you." whispered Nathan to Arik.  
  
"Yeah, now we can defend ourselves against the Yami Chosen better." added Ace.  
  
Arik glanced at Ray, Amara and Tori, who were listening to Coach Wilson's instructions. He sighed with frustration.  
  
"I don't know... something tells me it's going to take alot more than that..."  
  
(It will take alot more,) projected Amara into the three of their heads. (You have no idea what's in store for you.)  
  
The three of them saw Amara wave at them innocently and they all returned their attention to the Coach. With their ability to transform humans into Digimon, things were about to get even messier... 


	9. Achieving Perfect Form

Irvine sat at his computer console and was running through his daily scans on Trinity Server. The brown haired man leaned forward with his elbows resting on the console and checking the same stats he saw every day. No change in the barrier level, thanks to all the Hikari Chosen still being alive.  
  
"Ugh... this could not be more boring..." he groaned. Another of his associates walked in and stood behind the chair. He leaned over and stared at the monitor blankly.  
  
"Having fun in your dark little hole?" asked his associate.  
  
"Shut up, Green." replied Irvine. "It's not like you're having fun losing supporters in the mayoral election."  
  
"Touche."  
  
"How exactly did they cover up Jeska's attack on city hall?" inquired Irvine, running through some more tests.  
  
"It was a conspiracy is all they said. Just like the fire caused by Ray last night. There was no evidence for either incident. And it brings me to the issue I came to confront you about..."  
  
"And that is...?"  
  
"The Digimon transformation. Our other two allies have worked hard on searching for a way to transform the four of us into Digimon... but when Ray used the ability last night, his subject was unable to maintain any sort of sanity, let alone keep his human mind intact. He went insane and attacked both the Yami and Hikari Chosen."  
  
"I'll upgrade the power for Tori, Amara and Jeska." stated Irvine. "I'm assuming none of the Chosen were killed?"  
  
"Unfortunately not. Our Yami Chosen and that other one named Hieshi are expendable, since we can always create more. But that one girl is our key to victory."  
  
"Amara."  
  
"We can't create another girl who has telepathy." said Green, fuming over it. "But her will is stronger than the others, she won't follow the orders she has been given. Crystalmon and Magemon tried to break her, but she still is unwilling to kill for the goal."  
  
"What of the other four?"  
  
"We have no information on Hieshi, other than the fact that he's using us for the same reason we're using him. So it's safe to say he'll be compliant for now. He is more aggressive than the others, since his brother is one of the Hikaris."  
  
Green went on, hoping Irvine would be able to use all the information he was giving him to work up some brilliant scheme so he could get to Trinity Server. Trinity Server was a wondrous place... as far as he knew. He prayed a way to cure his wife's cancer lay there.  
  
"Jeska doesn't like us, but she's intrigued by the thought of the new world, and she is becoming attached to her partner. Knowing we can take him away from her keeps her submissive. Ray and Tori are definitely the two who obey the most, but they let their personal feelings get in the way of what needs to be done."  
  
Irvine thought to himself for a minute, then came up with a way to fix them all.  
  
"I was hesitant to do this, Green... but... increase the amount of Shadow data in each of their D-Volvers."  
  
"Are you sure?!" exclaimed Green. "That could drive them so mad they'll take their own lives!"  
  
"Hmmm... do it to Hieshi first. If that goes well, we'll perform the same procedure on the females and Ray. Hieshi wasn't even picked by us anyway."  
  
"Right. Hieshi. Increase Shadow Data." repeated Green, skeptically. (I sure as hell hope you know what you're doing, Irvine... it was your idea to risk fate by using data from the Shadow in the first place...)  
  
- - -  
  
At Willington Manor, Hieshi began to toss and turn in his bed. He threw his covers off and snapped upward, sweating furiously. He glanced at his clock and saw that it read 8:53 AM.  
  
"Almost nine... I never get up this early..."  
  
Angry at waking up early, he hopped out of bed and began to get dressed. He looked around his room and his eyes settled on his D-Volver. He glared at it with suspicious as the LCD screen began to glow red.  
  
"What the hell is that?"  
  
He ran over and picked it up, looking at it confused. He felt a slight tingle on his palm underneath the device as the red glow faded. He began to feel like he had a headache and began sweating again.  
  
"Hieshi, what's wrong?" asked Levelermon, who was sitting on his bedside table.  
  
"I... don't feel well..." he replied between panting. Then he shook his head for a minute and glared into space. "Levelermon..."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"It's time to rip my brother and the others to SHREDS!" he screamed, very irrationally thanks to the effects of the Shadow Cells. He scooped up Levelermon and dashed out the door, heading for RTC.  
  
- - -  
  
Lee entered RTC and glanced around the dormitory area. He walked over in the direction of Arik's dorm room, where Ace called him from.  
  
(Man this is weird. In four of these rooms are four of the Yami Chosen who are dead-set against us...) thought Lee.  
  
He knocked on the door and Ace opened it. He followed the football star inside to see Arik and James there as well. He nodded to the two of them, who nodded back.  
  
"Where are Ali, Nathan and Earnest?" inquired Lee.  
  
"Ali is coming. Earnest and Nathan have a class, so they couldn't make it." answered James. The black-haired Hikari Chosen was wearing a fancy suit like he usually did. Arik was just laying on his bed, bouncing Bouncemon off the roof.  
  
"Hey! Bouncemon's back!" exclaimed Lee, surprised. "When did that happen?"  
  
"As of last night before we got back from the PE trip." replied Arik. "Which is what we wanted to tell the rest of you about..."  
  
Lee heard the door shut behind him and saw Alison standing there. She was wearing a white shirt and shorts that she used for her pajamas and walked over to stand next to Lee. He smiled at her and she sort of smiled back.  
  
(Ugh, she's still depressed,) thought Lee, dejectedly. (Well at least she likes the ring I gave her--)  
  
"Ray turned Coach Wilson into a Digimon." said Arik, completely crashing Lee's train of thought. He, Ali and James all looked at Arik curiously.  
  
"You're... joking... right?" asked James.  
  
"Nope. We saw it and we fought it and we almost lost to it. Thankfully Bouncemon came to save us. We even had to partner up with Ray and Tori to win." growled Ace. "I didn't like it."  
  
"Didn't like the Digimon or working with Tori?" asked Lee, slyly. Though he already knew the answer. "I think someone likes Tori all of a sudden."  
  
"I think someone likes Ali all of a sudden." retorted Ace. Lee and Ali looked at each other and rolled their eyes.  
  
"We've been going out for over a year. That was your best comeback?"  
  
"ANYWAY!" shouted James, not caring about any of this conversation. "Can all the Yami Chosen do that? Like, say, my brother?"  
  
"No idea." replied Arik. "But now we've got even more to worry about."  
  
"And just when I was thinking of taking a vacation." joked Lee, leaning against the wall of Arik's messy dorm room. "Now if only we could get Ali, Earnest or Nathan back into the fray, then we'd at least have the numbers tied."  
  
"I don't know if that would help." said James. "You and Ace are our heaviest hitters and neither of you can stand up to them."  
  
"That's true... but for some reason we can't go to Perfect form..." sighed Lee. "Man, nothing good is going to happen today..."  
  
"Well..." began Ali, finally speaking. "I, uhm... was asked to go sing at the community center today along with some other students from the other colleges in town. I'm not sure if I could do it in front of a big crowd though... so can you four come? It'd be a nice break from all this Digimon business."  
  
"I'm there." said Lee. "You don't even have to ask."  
  
"Do we have to?" whined Ace, although Ali knew he was joking. She turned to leave.  
  
"It's at two. Don't be late."  
  
Ali left Arik's room and the four boys looked at each other, their minds still on the Yami Chosen.  
  
"So, who do you think is hottest? Amara, Tori or Jeska?" asked Ace. Lee slapped his hand on his forehead.  
  
"Oh god..." he groaned. "Let's not fantasize about the enemy..."  
  
"But it's fun!"  
  
"Yeah. So is getting pushed off a fence by Tori and getting a huge scar on the side of your forehead." said Lee sarcastically. "Let's hang out here for an hour or so and then head to the Community Center."  
  
- - -  
  
A while later, Hieshi came storming up into the dormitory area. Hieshi naturally had brown eyes, but wore contacts to make them red. Nathan only wished he was wearing contacts to change his eye color like Hieshi did. He walked up to the dorm room that he knew was his brother's and pounded on the door. He got no answer.  
  
(Fine. We'll do this the hard way.)  
  
Hieshi took a small piece of wire and stuck it into the keyhole of James's door. He had alot of experience picking locks. In his last school before military school, he picked the lock to the boiler room and planted explosives in there just to see how big the explosion would be. So picking James's lock would be no harder.  
  
Ray happened to be walking by and saw Hieshi. He raised his eyebrow and walked over to the twenty year old.  
  
"What exactly are you doing?"  
  
"Breaking into my brother's room."  
  
"Well, he's not here." replied Ray. "I saw their little group take off in Lee's car."  
  
"How long ago?"  
  
"Maybe two minutes."  
  
"Come on." growled Hieshi, grabbing Ray by the arm and dragging him off along with him.  
  
- - -  
  
"Ugh, my damn brother blew up my car when we fought." mumbled James, who was in the passenger seat next to Lee. Ace and Arik were in the back. "Now I have to take fricken public transit to school."  
  
"Boo-hoo." said Ace, sarcastically. "I can't even GET my license."  
  
"Ugh." groaned Lee. The three of them looked at him and saw the road was blocked up ahead due to a car crash. "Stupid people and crashing on the extra slippery roads. You'd think no one was prepared for this snowstorm. It's only DECEMBER!"  
  
"Well, we could take the back road." suggested Arik. "Not many people are driving today anyway, so it should be clear."  
  
Lee nodded and did a U-turn, going to head on the road that went around the entire city of Tamur to get to Ali's concert. He estimated it would only take an hour to get there, which would leave them with half an hour before it started.  
  
"Look! There they are!" shouted Ray as he and Hieshi walked out of an alleyway. They saw Lee's car go by and glanced at it in desperation, knowing they couldn't keep up with it. "What do we do?"  
  
Hieshi ran over to the nearest parked car and smashed the window open by throwing Levelermon through it. He unlocked the doors and the two of them climbed in.  
  
"You don't have the keys to this car." said Ray. But Hieshi simply laughed.  
  
"You don't know a thing about me, do you?"  
  
- - -  
  
About ten minutes later, Lee had reached another roadblock. He glared at the yellow and black signs that stopped him from driving ahead. He turned around and prepared to take an even further loop to get to the Community Center.  
  
"Lee, we aren't gonna make it..." sighed James. "You can't even drive fast because of the ice on the roads. They didn't salt the country roads."  
  
"I don't care. We're driving up there." replied Lee, single minded in his mission to not disappoint his girlfriend.  
  
"Fine kill us all." groaned James.  
  
Arik gasped as he looked in the rearview mirror.  
  
"I think that's what the guys behind us are about to do! We're being followed!" shouted Arik.  
  
Lee and James glanced up at the mirror to see Hieshi and Ray behind them in the car they jacked. Hieshi waved pleasantly before driving up next to them.  
  
"Is he going to ram us?!" exclaimed Ace.  
  
"He's insane if he does!" added Lee, applying pressure to the gas pedal in an attempt to get away from Hieshi.  
  
Hieshi rammed Lee's car and it began to spin out of control! It slid right into a ditch. Lee growled and jumped out of the car along with the other three. Hieshi parked in the middle of the road and leapt on top of his car.  
  
"Today is your final day!" he shouted. "Levelermon! Go!"  
  
"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!!"  
  
The huge black metal dragon emerged in the middle of the street and faced his four opponents, who all gasped.  
  
"We don't have time for this!" growled Lee, summoning Kokuwamon. "Kokuwamon, take him out fast!"  
  
"You too!" shouted Arik, Ace and James, summoning their partners as well.  
  
"Kokuwamon Shinka..."  
  
"Bouncemon Shinka..."  
  
"DemiTyrannomon Shinka..."  
  
"Keramon Shinka..."  
  
"... TECKUWAGAMON!!!"  
  
"... RACERMON!!!"  
  
"... DRAGONMON!!!"  
  
"... KURISARIMON!!!"  
  
"Get him!" yelled Lee.  
  
TecKuwagamon took to the air and slammed into Dyactoralmon, knocking him backwards. Racermon came speeding onto the scene and whirled into his shell.  
  
"LIGHTNING SAW!!!"  
  
Racermon slammed right into Dyactoralmon's chest, knocking him over completely! Dragonmon flew up and positioned himself right above Dyactoralmon.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!" he screamed, pouring fire all over Dyactoralmon. It didn't look like he could take much more of a beating.  
  
"Yeah, keep it going Dragonmon!" shouted Ace. Suddenly he saw IceDevimon fly up at Dragonmon.  
  
"You forget about me?!" yelled Ray, startling the Hikari Chosen.  
  
"FROZEN CLAW!!!"  
  
IceDevimon smashed Dragonmon with his claw, sending him crashing to the street and knocking a huge chunk out of the pavement. TecKuwagamon turned to attack IceDevimon, but the ice demon was too fast for him!  
  
"TUNDRA FREEZE!!!"  
  
TecKuwagamon was hit dead-on by the cold wave and pressed backwards, unable to handle it properly. Kurisarimon whipped himself upwards behind IceDevimon and wrapped his tentacles around his arms, legs, waist and neck, immobilizing him!  
  
"What is this?!" exclaimed IceDevimon.  
  
"VORTEX SPRAY!!!" yelled Racermon, blasting IceDevimon square in the chest. Kurisarimon dropped him to the ground and rejoined the other Hikari Adult Digimon.  
  
"How do ya like that, bro?" asked James, mockingly. The four of them turned to get back in the car when they heard Hieshi begin to laugh maniacally.  
  
"Uhh... I don't know what's wrong with him..." said Ray, a little uneasy. Hieshi was standing on the hood of the car they jacked and Ray backed away from it, slightly creeped out.  
  
"Dude, your bro wasn't this crazy the last time we met him." whispered Ace to James.  
  
"It's that Yami D-Volver." answered Kurisarimon. "I can sense Shadow energy in it."  
  
"Did you say Shadow?!" exclaimed Arik. "Oh that is definitely in the category of not good."  
  
"I wish he'd just finish." growled Lee, not even caring at the moment. "We're going to be late for Ali's performance."  
  
"Hikari Chosen, I let you defeat me!" shouted Hieshi, pointing an accusing finger at them. "You know why? Because now it will be all that more fun when I CRUSH YOU!!!"  
  
"Hieshi, look at you..." began Ray. "... you're sweating, you look like you can barely stand... are you sick?"  
  
Even Hieshi couldn't explain his sudden urge to go ballistic on the Hikari Chosen if he wanted too. Only the scientists knew the reason...  
  
"Yes I am... sick of them! Now witness Perfect Evolution!!!" screamed Hieshi, holding his D-Volver to the air.  
  
"What!?" exclaimed Lee, skeptically. "There's no way he can go perfect yet!"  
  
"It's the Shadow data Kurisarimon was talking about!" growled James. "When I was wearing the dark necklace, it drove me nuts! Except this time we can't rip it off him!"  
  
"Holy shit..." gasped Ace. "Look, he's doing it!"  
  
Hieshi's D-Volver began to gather energy from seemingly nowhere and he pointed it down at the fallen Dyactoralmon, beginning to transfer the energy to him.  
  
"YES! I! AM!" he screamed. "Do it now, Dyactoralmon!!!"  
  
"Dyactoralmon Shinka..."  
  
Dyactoralmon downsized considerably upon evolving and turned into a demon that was about twice the size of your average person. His new form was black and had long claws and wings. He opened two demonic red eyes and glared at the Hikari Chosen.  
  
"... RIEVERMON!!!"  
  
All four Hikari Chosen and Ray couldn't believe their eyes as the first of them had reached Perfect form. Hieshi was still laughing, but he felt faint and fell backwards onto the car roof.  
  
"Hieshi! Are you alright?!" asked Ray with concern.  
  
"Shut up!" he growled, madly. "Rievermon, feast upon their organs!"  
  
"He's nuts!" screamed Ace, getting frightened.  
  
"TecKuwagamon, go Perfect too!" yelled Lee, holding his D-Volver in TecKuwagamon's direction. Nothing happened.  
  
Rievermon leapt forward and bashed TecKuwagamon right in the face with his knee! Tecky was flung backwards and slammed right into the mountain behind the battle, leaving a huge imprint in the rocks on the side of it! The metallic insect fell forward and collapsed.  
  
"Oh my god." gasped Lee.  
  
Rievermon then turned to his next target: IceDevimon!  
  
"No! IceDevimon is on your side!" shouted Ray. Rievermon ran up to the ice demon and grabbed him by the throat, lifting him into the air.  
  
"Make him stop!" yelled Ray.  
  
"No!" replied Hieshi. "You'll all die! All of you!"  
  
Rievermon turned and hurled IceDevimon into Ace and Arik, sending the two boys flying backwards and smashing their heads on Lee's car, knocking them out. IceDevimon bounced off the hood and landed in the ditch.  
  
Next, Rievermon targeted Racermon. Racermon turned and began to speed away from the area as fast as he could and Rievermon amusingly gave chase.  
  
"Hieshi!" yelled James. "Stop this!"  
  
"Curl up and die!!!"  
  
"He won't stop! Let's get him!" growled Lee.  
  
Lee and James leapt up onto the road and ran in Hieshi's direction, but saw Racermon go smashing through the pavement in front of them and stopped in their tracks. Rievermon landed in front of them, knocking them backwards onto their butts.  
  
"Grrr... DRAGON INFERNO!!!" yelled Dragonmon, shooting fire from his mouth directly at Rievermon. Rievermon picked up Racermon's body and hurled it right through Dragonmon's fire attack, splitting it! Racermon hit him directly in the head, knocking him out!  
  
"Kurisarimon!!!" screamed James, fearing for his life. "Do something! ANYTHING!!!"  
  
Kurisarimon, being the only Digimon still conscious, did the first thing that came to his mind. He flung himself directly at Rievermon and latched onto his face! The cocoon Digimon wrapped his tentacles around Rievermon's head and began to squeeze as tight as he could, hoping to crack his skull.  
  
His attempt failed as Rievermon simply grabbed Kurisarimon with his right hand and ripped him off! He chucked him aside and then looked back down at his prey of Lee and James.  
  
"I do what Hieshi and I have to do to get to Trinity Server. And killing you will take me there." growled Rievermon in a low-pitched eerie voice.  
  
"Is that what this is all about?!" exclaimed Lee. He looked over at Ray, who was still too scared shitless to move. "Is that what this WHOLE THING is about?!"  
  
Ray nodded frantically.  
  
"That is RIDICULOUS!!!"  
  
"Ridiculous as you may think it to be so. It is time to end your lives." said Rievermon, heartlessly. "Say your prayers."  
  
"Hieshi!" gasped Ray, this time with concern instead of a plea. Rievermon turned and looked to see Hieshi had fainted and fallen off the hood of the car. He was laying very still.  
  
"What has happened?!" exclaimed Rievermon, leaping over to his fallen partner.  
  
"He just collapsed!" replied Ray. "You need to take him home and let him rest!"  
  
Rievermon picked up Hieshi in his arms and looked at his partner with concern. He then turned to Lee and James, who were too stunned to even blink.  
  
"This isn't over." growled Rievermon. He flapped his demonic wings and took off into the sky, carrying Hieshi home. Lee and James resumed blinking.  
  
"That was... scary..." gasped Lee.  
  
"I think my heart stopped." said James.  
  
"I'm outta here!" shouted Ray, who ran past them carrying DemiDevimon in his arms. "I'll get you next time!"  
  
Ray leapt into the car Hieshi jacked and drove away. Lee and James walked back over to Ace and Arik, who were just coming to.  
  
"Unnn... what's happening...?" groaned Arik as James helped him up. Lee did the same for Ace.  
  
"Rievermon's gone." replied James. "My brother collapsed..."  
  
Lee looked at his watch and his jaw dropped.  
  
"We're late!"  
  
- - -  
  
The four of them arrived at the community center and rush in the front door to see the entire place was... empty. Except for Alison, who was sitting on a bench near the door, looking extremely depressed. She was wearing a pink T-shirt and had her arms folded over it.  
  
"Ali!" exclaimed Lee. "Are--"  
  
"Shut up, Lee." she growled. "You guys missed the whole thing."  
  
"Well, you see..." he began. "We ran into two of the Yami Chosen, and--"  
  
"I don't care what your excuse is. This is the second time you've let me down this week..."  
  
Ali got up and walked past Lee, pushed Ace and James out of the way and opened the door to leave. The four boys turned around and looked at her, confused.  
  
"What do you mean by second time?" asked Lee, confused. "I don't recall a first time..."  
  
"I--" she began, but then her voice broke up. "Just never mind! You four can all go to hell!"  
  
Ali stormed out of the community center, leaving the four of them completely stunned by her. Ace was first to speak.  
  
"Almost killed and then bitched out for no reason." he observed. "All we need is go blind and this will be a perfect day!"  
  
"I'm more concerned with that Shadow data..." mumbled Arik. "We have no idea how it got into Hieshi..."  
  
"I hope my brother will survive... he looked really sick..." sighed James. "Lee, you don't look so hot either..."  
  
"Ali is keeping something from me." replied Lee.  
  
"I get the feeling you're better off not knowing..." said Ace, heading for the door. "I'm sick of today. I'm going to go watch porn and eat ice cream."  
  
Arik and James followed him. Lee stuck his hands in his pockets and stared at the floor as he left as well, wondering just what it could be...  
  
- - -  
  
In the scientist's headquarters, Green walked back into Irvine's room. Irvine looked up at him expectantly, knowing he had some form of news for him.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Your brilliant idea almost killed Hieshi. Not only that, but he almost killed Ray too."  
  
"Like I care." replied Irvine. "How did the Hikari Chosen fare?"  
  
"Hieshi went to Perfect form and nearly defeated four of them, but something distracted him at the last minute." answered Green. "You aren't really thinking about--"  
  
"Yes. Give Shadow data to the other four immediately."  
  
"If I may ask... where do you get this Shadow data from?"  
  
Irvine grinned.  
  
"A very secret supplier, and she wants to remain anonymous. Now go away and do as I told you."  
  
Green nodded reluctantly and left Irvine's room. This was either going to go very badly or even worse. 


	10. Server Damage

Early next morning, the sun was just rising over the mountains, allowing its light to peek over the mountains and shine down on the city of Tamur. Houses right on the mountains didn't recieve this early gift and were still blanketed in darkness for at least another hour.  
  
Just like Hieshi was right now. He was just sleeping off the effects of the Shadow data that was transferred into him yesterday. Luckily for him, the effects of it were short, so it only lasted about a day. A slight berserker rage that almost result in the death of five chosen and himself. It's a very scary thought.  
  
At RTC, Jeska was sprawled out on her bed, fast asleep. The Yami Chosen with beautiful red hair awoke when she saw light creep through her window. It hit her closed eyes and forced them open.  
  
"Unnn... what time is it...?" she asked, while yawning.  
  
"Exactly 6:43 AM. You should get more rest," answered Magemon, who was leaning back against the wall of her dorm room.  
  
"Do you sleep?"  
  
"Don't need to," answered the cloaked Digimon.  
  
"Weird..." began Jeska. She reached onto her bedside table and felt around for her alarm clock so she could shut the alarm off before it went off in her ear. Her hand rested on her D-Volver for a minute as she felt around and it shocked her hand. Magemon looked up at it.  
  
"Ow!" she hissed, blowing on her palm. "What was that!?"  
  
(Oh no... Irvine's using the Shadow data...) thought Magemon. (Now I'm going to be affected too. Well, I suppose if it helps us achieve our goal faster...)  
  
"It was probably nothing. Why don't you try and get more sleep. I'll wake you."  
  
"Alright..."  
  
- - -  
  
Ace and Arik dashed down the halls of RTC, pushing their way past people as they searched frantically for something. Ace and Arik both had brown hair; the only major difference between them was that Ace is considerably taller. And the fact that Ace wore a short that read: 'Your mom thinks I'm hot'.  
  
"So where is Lee?" asked Arik.  
  
"He's at Karate. James and Nathan went with him to observe," answered Ace. "Ali is pissed at us, so I don't wanna ask her for anything. We'll ask Earnest."  
  
"He'd better be able to," replied Arik. "You saw how insane Hieshi went yesterday! If that happens to any of the other Yami Chosen... or even to one of us-"  
  
"Let's not think about that," said Ace, cutting him off. "Look, there's Earnest!"  
  
Earnest was the only Chosen who stood taller than Ace or Lee, and he had long dark brown hair that was tied up in a ponytail behind his head. He was clothed in a sleeveless jacket that was overtopping a red shirt, and he also had blue jeans on. Like most people nowadays, he wore a necklace, and his had a wolf's tooth on it.  
  
"Ernie, my man!" shouted Ace, waving at him.  
  
Earnest groaned and rolled his eyes. He was quiet and studious, and Ace totally ruined his rhythm when he was around. Calling him retarded nicknames and just plain acting like himself. But Ace and Earnest still got along exceptionally well when they hung out, and fought as a tag-team together a lot during the Shadow incident.  
  
Arik and Earnest were both quiet people, so they could get along well without saying much to each other.  
  
"It's Earnest," he corrected Ace. "And is there something in particular that you need?"  
  
"Uh, yeah. We really need to update ya and ask you for some help," said Ace, turning serious and whispering that to Earnest.  
  
Earnest nodded and leaned up against the wall, all ears.  
  
"Bouncemon came back to me the other day," said Arik. "The Yami Chosen can upload wild Digimon by using humans as host bodies. Ray used our PE coach and made a Meramon. But during the upload, Bouncemon was able to escape."  
  
"We think we can get yours, Nathan's and Ali's partners back in a similar way," added Ace. "And that's what we need your help with..."  
  
"You gotta get Leila back!" shouted Arik.  
  
"I really want her back, but why the high demand all of a sudden?"  
  
"Shadow data!" hissed Ace. "It's around and it's DANGEROUS! Leila is a guardian, she can destroy it!"  
  
Earnest's eyes fixated on Ace with a look of shock.  
  
"Are you SURE you saw Shadow data? You SAW a Shadow?"  
  
"No, but their data is coming from somewhere. I think it's just leftover viruses, but someone has managed to process it and is using it to fuel the Yami Chosen's darkness. That's what their D-Volver's are made of!" Arik exclaimed, getting fairly worked up, which was unlike him.  
  
"Hmmm... yes that does seem logical," replied Earnest after a bit of thinking. "I had an idea to get her back, but I'm not sure if it would work..."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Well, I originally discovered her when I was 8, near my village in Hive Forest. I was thinking I should go back there and see if the gate to Trinity Server is still open..."  
  
"You haven't done that yet?" asked Ace, skeptically. "Are you retarded? Let's go!"  
  
"Alright," agreed Earnest. He turned around to leave the school and head for his car. Ace and Arik followed him. As they walked out the doors, two passing Yami Chosen happened to see them.  
  
"Hmm..." mumbled Jeska as she saw them leave.  
  
"Hmm..." mumbled Hieshi at the same time.  
  
Hieshi and Jeska looked at each other, nodded, and followed them.  
  
"Hieshi... I detect more Shadow data..." whispered Levelermon from Hieshi's pocket. Hieshi glanced down at him and then looked at Jeska.  
  
"I think I know where it's coming from," he whispered back. He narrowed his eyes as he studied her. "This is going to be interesting..."  
  
"Interesting?! It almost killed you!"  
  
"I recovered quickly," replied Hieshi in protest. "Besides, it won't effect her until she gets into battle like it did to me. I'll help her if she gets sick."  
  
"Wow, you actually care about other people."  
  
"I like this one. She's brilliant."  
  
- - -  
  
At Lunn's Karate dojo, Lee was dressed in his white karate uniform and repeatedly punching a black bag that was hanging from the roof. James and Nathan yawned.  
  
"Come on! I wanna see some fighting!" shouted Nathan. "Hey Amara!"  
  
Amara, who was at the other side of the gym with her friend Tammy, looked up at Nathan as she called. Tammy had short blonde hair, completely the opposite of Amara's long dark brown hair.  
  
(Nathan, I would advise you not to mention anything about Digimon in front of Master Lunn or Tammy,) she projected into his head.  
  
"Yes, Nathan?"  
  
Amara and Tammy walked over, and Lee rolled his eyes, continuing his training under Master Lunn's supervision.  
  
"Isn't the Karate tournament in two days?" asked Nathan.  
  
Amara wondered why he was even brave enough to talk to someone who was sworn again them, but had no objection to playing the little game he was planning.  
  
"It is, Nathan," answered Tammy. "And I'm gonna win!"  
  
"Sure you are," groaned Amara. "So where are you going with this?"  
  
Amara already knew, and Nathan knew that too. But they had to pretend so the non-Chosen people wouldn't get suspicious.  
  
"I wanna see some pre-tournament action! You and Lee go at it! Right now!"  
  
Lee froze when he heard Nathan say that, and the punching bag flew back and smacked the blonde boy right in the face. He rubbed his jaw and turned to Nathan.  
  
"Hell no!" he exclaimed in protest. "Master Lunn, we shouldn't-"  
  
"Some practice couldn't hurt either of you," spoke the gray haired Karate master. "You two should spar."  
  
"This should be good," giggled Nathan as Tammy sat down next to him and James. Nathan looked down her uniform. "Well hello there..."  
  
"In your dreams," said Amara's best friend, shooting Nathan down. "Did anyone ever tell you that you have black eyes? Are those contacts?"  
  
Nathan almost fell off the bench, and James laughed at him a bit.  
  
"Yes, Tammy, they're contacts. I like them," he answered with disgust.  
  
"Lying putz," whispered James.  
  
Amara and Lee squared off in the center of the mats and both of them bowed, as was tradition.  
  
(Ugh. I'm going to kill Nathan...) thought Lee.  
  
(You won't be capable of that once I take you out,) projected Amara into his head, having read his mind. (Not here, not at the tournament... but the next time we fight with our partners, you're MINE! I'll make you pay for what you said to me!)  
  
(I said what?)  
  
"And... begin!" shouted Lunn, cutting them off. The two of them began to spar, Amara immediately taking his lead, knowing where his every strike would be.  
  
(You know what you said to me!)  
  
(I didn't say anything! Even read my mind!)  
  
Amara did so and gasped when she found out that Lee was telling the truth. She glanced around and stopped the match.  
  
"I have to go," she said quickly.  
  
"What? Why?" asked Tammy.  
  
"I've got to go do something," she answered, picking up her things. (Oh, Crystalmon is going to pay for screwing with my head...)  
  
Amara quickly left, leaving Lunn, Lee, Tammy, James and Nathan confused.  
  
"Whaat? I wanted to see a chick kick Lee's ass!" shouted Nathan in disappointment. Lee blew a raspberry at him.  
  
"I'll take over," said Tammy, back flipping onto the mat and throwing a kick at Lee. Lunn studied her moves carefully.  
  
(Tammy is quite the skilled fighter, and a very energetic girl,) observed Lunn. (Perhaps... she's quality material to be the next Yami Chosen...)  
  
- - -  
  
Earnest, Ace and Arik walked into a small village that lay in a clearing in hive forest. The village had a few buildings in it, a post office, a general store, a gas station, a forge and a town hall. It was small, but it was where Earnest was raised and was used to being.  
  
"Uh... wow. This is like the size of the dorms," said Arik, looking around.  
  
"Where's this Digital gate?" asked Ace, impatiently.  
  
"Just a minute, I have to go check in with my grandfather," replied Earnest, heading for one of the small houses in the village.  
  
"The guy who found you and adopted you, right?"  
  
"Hey, you DO listen."  
  
"I drift in and out," replied Ace. "Hey, if he adopted you, shouldn't he be your dad, instead of your grandpa?"  
  
"Uh. Shut up."  
  
Earnest opened the door and went to check in with him while Ace and Arik remained stationary outside. They looked around the quiet forest, with no noise except for that coming from the forge.  
  
"Wow, this place is really quiet and relaxing," observed Arik. "Almost makes me wanna go to sleep."  
  
"Eh, nature is not my favorite place. I'll be glad when we find that Digital gate and get out of here..."  
  
"A city boy, eh?" asked Arik.  
  
"Well, I-"  
  
Their conversation trailed off as in the trees encircling the village, we see Hieshi and Jeska sitting on one of the outstretched branches, hidden from view by the leaves in front of them. But they could see Ace and Arik very well.  
  
"A Digital gate, hmm?" asked Hieshi, intrigued. "This could well be our ticket to Trinity Server."  
  
"I don't care about that right now. I just wanna take those useless Hikari Chosen out," replied Jeska.  
  
"I see. Well I want-"  
  
Jeska grabbed Hieshi by the collar of his shirt and pulled him towards her so his eyes were locked with her angry ones.  
  
"I don't give a damn what YOU want! We're going to follow those fools to the Digital gate and then take it from them! And you're going to listen to me, you egotistical male freak!"  
  
Jeska threw Hieshi off the tree and sat there watching as Earnest came out and rejoined his two comrades. Hieshi groaned and rubbed his head.  
  
"That's definitely the Shadow data." Levelermon said to him.  
  
"No, I think she's always like that..." groaned Hieshi.  
  
Earnest, Ace and Arik turned to leave when they heard a voice call out to them. It was Earnest's friend Harold.  
  
"Hey, dude! Where ya goin?!"  
  
"Just to go look for something," answered Earnest. "These are my friends from school; Arik and Ace."  
  
"Nice to meet ya," said Arik.  
  
"Like, dude! What are ya lookin' for?!"  
  
"Just a way to get Leila back."  
  
Ace and Arik gave Earnest a strange look.  
  
"Are you sure it's, like, cool to mention Leila to him, dude?" whispered Ace, mocking Harold's way of speak.  
  
"Yeah, none of the people in my village care about Digimon. They believe them to be spirit creatures. Leila can roam here as much as she want without being hidden."  
  
"Are you serious?!" exclaimed Ace. "So they'd like to have DemiTyrannomon around?"  
  
"Yes. As long as he didn't blow anything up."  
  
"So, we could keep our partners here! Without having to hide them in the house!" shouted Ace.  
  
"Uhh... we'll ask the mayor when we get back. Let's get going," replied the long-haired boy. Ace and Arik turned to follow him.  
  
"Dude, can I come too!?"  
  
"Say no." groaned Ace under his breath.  
  
"Yeah, come on then!" shouted Earnest to Harold. Ace fell over. The four of them began to trek into the forest. Earnest and Arik were in the lead, with Harold right behind them and Ace keeping his distance far far back.  
  
"So how far are we exactly?" asked Arik.  
  
"Not far. We'll soon arrive in the place where I was warped to Trinity server for a brief second before encountering Leila."  
  
"You just got warped there? That's odd..." mused Arik. (Sounds like the barriers were just becoming eroded by the Shadow at that point. I wonder how they're holding up with all these Yami Chosen uploading things...)  
  
"Dude, that fox-chick was like, wicked!" exclaimed Harold, remembering Leila.  
  
"Dude, get a life," mumbled Ace.  
  
Harold, annoyed by Ace's attitude, turned and left the others, them not even noticing his absence. He took a few steps through the forest and looked around, scratching his head.  
  
"Geez, that dude was harsh..." sighed Harold. "Maybe I don't mix well with those city-type people..."  
  
Harold continued walking, only to have Hieshi run up behind him and clamp one hand over his mouth and wrap his other hand around his neck.  
  
"Well this is convenient," whispered Hieshi into his ear. "How do you like being my hostage?"  
  
- - -  
  
Earnest, Ace and Arik arrived at the side of a mountain that was very craggy and looked impossible to climb. Where they were standing though, was in front of a strange bed of flowers that was about ten centimeters long.  
  
"Here we are," said Earnest. Ace and Arik looked at him skeptically.  
  
"There's no Digital gate here," protested Ace, calling DemiTyrannomon to the area. "Is there?"  
  
DemiTyrannomon sniffed around for a minute and then nodded.  
  
"There is, Ace. I can sense it."  
  
"Me too," said Bouncemon, whom Arik called as well.  
  
"I told you. Now let me see if I can open it..."  
  
Earnest began to concentrate on opening the gate with his mind. It was a daunting task, but he'd done it before years ago. The air in front of him began to ripple unnaturally as Ace and Arik looked on in amazement.  
  
"Did you... do it?" asked Ace.  
  
Earnest stuck his arm into the rippling air and the amount he put in disappeared. He pulled it back out and nodded.  
  
"It's open. Now we have to-"  
  
"You have to do nothing!" shouted a female voice. The three of them turned to see red-haired Jeska standing there, along with Tawnosmon. The two of them looked very dominating and sure of themselves.  
  
"Hey, you're one of the Yami Chosen!" shouted Ace, recognizing her. "Well we'll send you packing!"  
  
"Will you?"  
  
Jeska motioned to Hieshi, who came walking out of the forest, holding Harold as a hostage. Harold struggled and tried to call for help, but Hieshi had a good grip on his mouth and neck. Hieshi grinned as he knew they'd won already. Ace, Arik and Earnest gasped.  
  
"That's what happens when you're mean to people, Ace," hissed Arik.  
  
"Hey, shut up."  
  
"You three step away from the gate, or this guy won't be living to see twenty-five," threatened Hieshi. Ace, Arik and Earnest had no choice but to comply, and walked away from the rippling air.  
  
"You win. Now let him go," said Earnest.  
  
"Not yet," Hieshi replied. "Jeska, test the portal."  
  
"Don't give me orders."  
  
Jeska and Tawnosmon walked over to the rippling air and Jeska dipped her arm in just like Earnest did. She looked at her partner.  
  
"Do you sense your world?"  
  
"I do," replied the armored Digimon. "It is through the gate-what the?!"  
  
Tawnosmon tensed up and Jeska looked at him, confused.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
Suddenly, Leila leapt out of the gate! The Renamon in army pants outstretched both of her legs and kicked Jeska and Tawnosmon, sending them both crashing to the ground!  
  
"Leila!" exclaimed Earnest, joyfully.  
  
"Hey, you think I'd miss this party?" she asked.  
  
Jeska growled as she wiped the dirt off of her face. The Shadow cells were beginning to take effect on her just as they were with Hieshi yesterday.  
  
"Grrr... meddlesome witch! Tawnosmon, rip her apart!"  
  
Leila turned and whipped out a gun, pointing it directly at Tawnosmon's head.  
  
"Don't even move, or your partner will be a widow," threatened Leila.  
  
"Heh heh... you are a fool. ASTRAL PROJECTION!!!"  
  
Tawnosmon suddenly turned into ten Tawnosmon's! Leila gasped, startled by this illusion. Tawnosmon then took the time to kick the gun out of her hands and tackle her!  
  
"Oh that's it now!" shouted Hieshi. "This guy gets it!"  
  
"I don't think so!" yelled Ace, running at Hieshi. He dove to the ground and did a swoop kick, knocking both Harold and Hieshi off their feet! He then tackled Hieshi and the two of them went rolling down the hill into the forest uncontrollably!  
  
"Ace!" shouted Arik, dashing after him. Earnest ran to help Harold up.  
  
"You alright?"  
  
"Dude, the next time I try to follow you somewhere... don't let me."  
  
Leila bucked up and kicked Tawnosmon off, then whipped around and pulled out her guns again, skillfully shooting all nine projections of himself that he made. She turned around expecting to see one of him... but now there were twenty of him! Her jaw dropped.  
  
"What is this?" she gasped.  
  
"Your downfall," answered a hybrid of twenty Tawnosmon voices. They all ran at her, and she, unable to discern which ones were real, just shot at them rapidly! She took out about five projections before the real one kicked her in the head, sending her sliding through the dirt.  
  
"Now finish her off!" screamed Jeska. "Rip her to shreds!"  
  
"Earnest, I'm detecting a lot of Shadow data in that girl!" announced Leila, leaping back up to her feet.  
  
"So, you're a guardian, destroy it!"  
  
"I... can't. Earnest... there aren't guardians anymore," she told him, sadly.  
  
"What!?" he exclaimed, hardly able to believe her. If she was telling the truth, then their entire strategy was ruined!  
  
- - -  
  
Hieshi growled and threw Ace off of him! Ace landed a few feet away from Hieshi and both boys stopped to catch their breath. Arik ran into the area where they fell and looked at the both of them. Bouncemon and DemiTyrannomon ran down after him.  
  
"Ace, you alright?" asked Arik.  
  
"Never better," groaned Ace as Arik grabbed his arm and hauled his buddy up to his feet. They heard gunshots coming from up the ridge Ace and Hieshi had fallen off of and glanced in that direction.  
  
"Earnest is in trouble," said Arik. Ace nodded, already knowing where Arik was going with that statement.  
  
The two boys ran to climb back up and help Earnest, but Levelermon was hurled right between their heads with the help of a pitch from Hieshi. The rubic cube clattered on the ground in front of them before it began to evolve.  
  
"Oh, not this again..." groaned Ace, knowing that Hieshi was planning to head to Perfect stage once more.  
  
"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!!"  
  
"Dyactoralmon Shinka... RIEVERMON!!!"  
  
The demon Digimon outstretched his wings and glanced menacingly down at the two frightened Hikari Chosen.  
  
"We couldn't even beat this guy with Lee and James, so what chance do we have now?!" exclaimed Ace, backing away from Rievermon alongside Arik.  
  
"None if we don't try!" shouted DemiTyrannomon, running up next to Ace.  
  
"Yeah, since when did we turn into the wuss squad?! A year ago we kicked butt and took names! We beat stronger Chosen than this guy, and those were the mind-warped ones that Desiree sent at us!" agreed Bouncemon, leaping next to Arik.  
  
"That's a pep talk if I ever heard one. Evolve now!" shouted Arik.  
  
"DemiTyrannomon Shinka..."  
  
"Bouncemon Shinka..."  
  
"Morons," muttered Hieshi as their two Adult forms appeared. "I only wish my brother was here to crush as well."  
  
"... DRAGONMON!!!"  
  
"... RACERMON!!!"  
  
"Don't hold anything back! This guy is so arrogant, he makes me sick!" growled Ace.  
  
The mighty black dragon took to the air while Racermon revved his engine and sped in on the ground. The two adults charged their attacks at the same time as they charged Rievermon, who didn't budge an inch.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!"  
  
"VORTEX SPRAY!!!"  
  
Both attacks hit Rievermon dead center in the stomach, creating a explosion that sent him skidding backwards through the dirt while still on his feet. The demon warrior outstretched his arms and smacked two trees down with ease as he flew back. He stopped himself and picked up the trees in each hand.  
  
"Oh that can't be good," gasped Arik.  
  
Rievermon hurled one tree at Dragonmon, who was too slow to avoid it and got smashed across the head and sent plummeting to the ground.  
  
Racermon was hit next, as Rievermon used the other tree like a baseball bat and sent Racermon flying through a tree.  
  
"Alright, now let's win this, go kill the other guy and get the hell to Trinity Server already!" shouted Hieshi, getting impatient.  
  
Rievermon acknowledged his comment and leapt over to Ace and Arik, who screamed.  
  
"Well, it was nice knowing you, Arik."  
  
"You too, Ace."  
  
"GOODBYE!" yelled Rievermon, raising his right arm to slay them. Suddenly, there was a bright glow from both of their Hikari D-Volvers, which blinded Rievermon!  
  
"Argh! What is that?!" he hissed.  
  
"The shining light of us about to kick your ass around the forest!" shouted Ace, suitably relieved that he knew what was coming next. The fallen Dragonmon and Racermon began to glow as well.  
  
"Dragonmon Shinka..."  
  
"Racermon Shinka..."  
  
Dragonmon reconstructed himself so that he was wearing a metal helmet now and had two large metal wings. A missile compartment appeared on his chest as well.  
  
"... METALDRAGONMON!!!"  
  
Racermon changed form completely, becoming a green techno-organic, humanoid Digimon with a red visor on his head in place of eyes.  
  
"... TECHAMON!!!"  
  
Hieshi and Rievermon overlooked their two new opponents and did not seem too impressed.  
  
"This is it?" asked Hieshi. "Can it really be any improvement?"  
  
"Oh there's improvement alright! Why don't you show him, Techamon?!" yelled Arik.  
  
Techamon leapt at Rievermon faster than the eye could see and drew a sword from his back.  
  
"TECH SABER!!!"  
  
Rievermon held up his forearms to block the attack as Techamon brought the saber down on him. The force of the hit crushed Rievermon into the ground a bit, making a small crater.  
  
"Hmm, perhaps stronger than I expected," said Hieshi, changing his mind. "The outcome of this battle will still be the same, however."  
  
"There's no room in this forest for your evil!" growled Techamon, still forcing the blade down on Rievermon.  
  
Rievermon simply smirked and kneed Techamon in the gut, causing him to choke and drop the blade onto the dirt. Rievermon punched him in the side of the head, knocking the green android to the ground. He stepped out of the miniature crater they made together.  
  
"There's no room in this forest for your weakness," growled Rievermon.  
  
Suddenly he noticed the sun was blocked out above him and glanced up to see MetalDragonmon was the culprit, having positioned himself directly above him.  
  
"Putting me in the dark are we?" asked Rievermon. "You sure that's wise?"  
  
"DRAGON MISSILE!!!" was all MetalDragonmon had to say in response. He chest plates opened and he fired two missiles directly at Rievermon. Rievermon simply held out his hands and caught each missile in his palms.  
  
"What?!" exclaimed Ace.  
  
"No way!" yelled Arik, in disbelief.  
  
"These are of the lowest quality," said Rievermon, looking at the missiles. "You keep them."  
  
He hurled them back upwards through the air at an awestruck MetalDragonmon. The missiles collided with the armored dragon, sending him crashing down into the forest, out of sight.  
  
Hieshi turned to Ace and Arik, who were distraught over still losing the match.  
  
"Here's a hint," began Hieshi. "Rievermon gains large amounts of power in darkness, hence how he reflected your pathetic attack. You never wanna meet me in a dark alley."  
  
"Quit taunting us. If you're going to finish us off, just do it,." growled Ace.  
  
"Not today. I expect a bigger challenge from you in the future. If you even have a future."  
  
Rievermon leapt over to Hieshi and picked him up, then he began to fly back up to where the gate was located. Ace and Arik watched him as he left.  
  
"I just don't get that guy..." sighed Ace.  
  
"He thought we were weak, so he figured he'd kill us. When he saw our Perfect forms appear, he knew he could have more fun toying with us in the future. To put it simply."  
  
"Well, let's hope he doesn't get his Ultimate before we get ours back. Of course knowing our luck, he will."  
  
- - -  
  
Back in the meadow area, Leila and Tawnosmon were still engaged in combat. However, as the fight took it's toll on Leila, Tawnosmon continued to grow stronger thanks to the Shadow data.  
  
"Kill her! Rip her to shreds!" screamed Jeska, under the full influence of the infected D-Volver. Tawnosmon was attempting to do so, but even with his power boost, the kitsune Digimon was still very agile.  
  
"Don't you realize that your mind has been poisoned?" asked Earnest of Jeska. "You look like you're going to collapse."  
  
"I don't need ANY advice from either of you!" she growled at Earnest and Harold. "Go worship some spirit or something."  
  
"Sorry, but I'm going to need to restrain you to prevent your partner from attacking mine," said Earnest, heading toward Jeska. "Harold, help me?"  
  
"Sure, like, this isn't crazy enough already without us having to manhandle some red-headed chick."  
  
The two boys approached Jeska, who glared at them with a look of uncertainty. She was unsure if she was going to be able to properly defend herself, but then again, she was unsure of everything right now, thanks to the Shadow data.  
  
"Excuse me. Picking on girls?" asked a demonic voice from behind them. Earnest and Harold turned to see Rievermon standing there.  
  
"What the--" was all Earnest got out before Rievermon smashed he and Harold away with his right arm. The two of them landed hard on the ground, knocked out.  
  
Leila dodged a punch from Tawnosmon and leapt upwards, kicking the armored Digimon in head and knocking him to the ground. She whipped out one gun and held it to his head.  
  
"End game," she growled...  
  
... right before she was hurled a good two feet into the side of the mountain by Rievermon.  
  
"Ooh, that's got to hurt," observed Hieshi. "Three Hikari Chosen taken out in under two minutes. That's a good record, Rievermon."  
  
Jeska ran over to the Trinity portal and Hieshi watched her as she did. He raised an eyebrow at her.  
  
(Now why would a girl with no interest in Trinity Server be wanting to go there so badly. It's got to be those moronic old men tampering with her head. If the Shadow truly do exist, though... she might just be letting them-- oh crap.)  
  
"Jeska, don't go near that portal!" screamed Hieshi. But Jeska was too worked up to even care what he had to say. She held her D-Volver up the rippling air that Leila came out of earlier.  
  
"Like I'll listen to you, tool! Portal open!" she ordered it. Instead, a bunch of black data was sucked out of her D-Volver and body, flying into the portal. The air simply stopped rippling after that and Jeska collapsed into the dirt.  
  
"What just went on?" asked Rievermon.  
  
"The Shadow data that was inhabiting Jeska was released into the portal," explained Hieshi, picking up Jeska. "She'll be fine in about a day... but our server's barrier..."  
  
"Oh, I see. Killing the Hikari Chosen weakens OUR barrier. But the Shadow data is going from our world to Trinity Server, so..."  
  
"Trinity Server's barrier will be weakened," finished Hieshi. "And I can't tell you yet if that will help or hurt us..."  
  
- - -  
  
"Whoa!" exclaimed Green, looking at a monitor screen in the scientist's underground base. Lunn; the karate sensei, walked in when he heard Green. The grey haired man looked at the businessman. The two had completely contrasting jobs and personalities, but their goal was united.  
  
"What is it?" asked Lunn, curiously.  
  
"Trinity Server's barrier power is dropping! Ten percent... thirty percent... FIFTY percent!" yelled Green in amazement.  
  
"So can we escape there now?" inquired Lunn, unsure of what that meant.  
  
"No, but we can bring bigger things here. ALOT bigger," Green informed him. "Perfects, even Ultimates!"  
  
"How about a very powerful Child?"  
  
Green raised his eyebrow at Lunn.  
  
"Why would you want to bring a child? We already brought four, and it was easy."  
  
"Well, our current Yami Chosen aren't doing their job right..." began Lunn. "I say we give them a week, if no success is achieved... we'll make the most powerful of them all..."  
  
"Anyone in mind?"  
  
"There is a girl I would like to corrupt, and a Child I would like to bring."  
  
"Ask Irvine first, but the quicker you do this... the better."  
  
"I will. And neither the Yami or Hikari chosen will know what hit them..." 


	11. The Deepest Secret

Amara burst back into the halls of RTC, angrily fiddling with the three bracelets she wore on her left arm. She marched up the stairs to the dorms, her dark brown hair flowing behind her as she walked exceptionally fast.  
  
She marched up to her room and unlocked with the turn of a key and looked in to see Crystalmon laying on her bed. The crystal cat's ears perked up as she heard Amara come in.  
  
(Oh. Hello Amara.)  
  
"What the hell, Crystalmon?!" exclaimed an angry Amara. "Why did you have Magemon become Lee and mess with my head?!"  
  
(What makes you think I did?)  
  
"Don't even start with lame-ass excuses! I can read your damn mind and you know what I said is true!" she screamed, slamming the door behind her. "I thought having a Digimon partner was about trust! Where the hell is the trust in you manipulating me?!"  
  
(Amara, believe me, I would never hurt you. But you need to follow to objective better and I was hoping that would properly motivate you to kill Trainer. If we don't accomplish our mission, the scientists will dispose of me and the other Digimon partners.)  
  
"Well I won't kill him," she huffed, although she understood Crystalmon's position. She didn't want anything to happen to her partner. "Someone else."  
  
(His girlfriend is a Hikari Chosen. And she does not have her partner back yet. Nathan Klentz is also without a partner. Pick one of them.)  
  
"Hmph. Do you even have to ask? Alison's head is mine on a platter."  
  
- - -  
  
"Happy birthday!" shouted Ace, running into Lee's room with Nathan first thing in the morning. "We made you a cake!"  
  
"Huh? You did?" groaned Lee, sleepily. The blonde boy pulled his face out of his blue pillow and sat up, rubbing his eyes. Turning nineteen was a satisfying feeling at best, Lee knew it was only two years until he turned into a full adult.  
  
"Yeah, here you go," said Nathan.  
  
Lee felt a cupcake hit him in the face and grumbled as it peeled off of his cheek, leaving a sticky residue of chocolate on his cheek. He glared at Ace and Nathan.  
  
"Was that really necessary?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah, now here's eighteen more!" shouted Ace and Nathan, who proceeded to pelt Lee with cupcakes. He had to remember to get them back on their birthdays, but decided to just sit here and enjoy the chocolate shower.  
  
- - -  
  
Later, after Lee had showered and thrown his clothes and sheets in the wash, he went downstairs to join Nathan and Ace in the kitchen. Nathan was busy making a sandwich using everything in the fridge, while Ace was sitting at the kitchen table, reading a sports magazine.  
  
"Hey... where are Kokuwamon and DemiTyrannomon?" asked Lee, curiously. He hadn't seen either of the two Child Digimon yet, which was funny, because they liked to break down the bathroom door while he was in the shower to scare the hell out of him.  
  
"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you. Earnest's village actually LIKES Digimon! They think they're spirit creatures or something," began Ace. Lee raised an eyebrow at him.  
  
"So they're at Earnest's village out in the forest?"  
  
"Yeah. No worrying about anyone seeing them at the party tonight," said Ace, figuring his plan was ingenious. "They'll take good care of them."  
  
"What happens if we get into trouble?"  
  
"Then we call them here with the D-Volvers, duh."  
  
"How do we get them back?" inquired Lee. "That's not exactly a short drive."  
  
"Uhhh..." mumbled Ace. "That hasn't come to me yet."  
  
"Does anything ever come to you?" asked Nathan, leaning against the counter and ripping a huge chunk of his sandwich off, devouring it.  
  
"My hamster came to me once when I called it... of course then it died."  
  
"So how's the party planning?" asked Lee.  
  
"Great!" exclaimed Nathan in excited response. "Lots of people want to come since we're the only kids who have their house owned by the mayor. Meaning we have a huge house."  
  
"And a hot tub," added in Ace. He was a great fan of the hot tub they had installed on the back porch. Mainly because he figured it was his perfect place to score.  
  
"You're not going to get any action in that thing, Ace. It's freaking winter out," Lee stated.  
  
"You got some in there!"  
  
"That was from my GIRLFR-- err, did either of you invite Alison?" inquired Lee, cutting himself off in mid-speech. Ace and Nathan glanced at each other.  
  
"I tried to speak to her today, but she slapped me," said Ace. "I think she's still bitter."  
  
"She's not mad at me. I could ask her," offered Nathan.  
  
"Please do," pleaded Lee. "And please tell her not to be mad at me, it wasn't our fault we missed her concert."  
  
"Yes sir, Captain Suck up!"  
  
"Oh, that's very mature, Nathan."  
  
"I thought so," he replied, triumphantly finishing his sandwich. He had successfully burned both Ace and Lee, so it was time to go to school. "I'm taking your car."  
  
"Alri-- hey, wait! I gotta go to karate practice! I'll drop you off on the way!"  
  
Lee turned and chased Nathan out the door, while Ace just laughed at them from his seat at the kitchen table.  
  
"Poor bastards and their sch-- oh crap. WAIT FOR ME!!!"  
  
- - -  
  
Tori Estrada was not a very happy girl in PE class today. She had successfully hit Coach Wilson with a basketball when he contradicted her and was forced to do fifty push-ups. She groaned as she performed the aforementioned task, wearing her white RTC t-shirt and green gym shorts.  
  
"Thirty-seven.. urgh... thirty-eight..."  
  
"Hey Tori, getting sweaty?" asked Ace, leaning over her. He couldn't see the reaction on her face, since it was covered by her brown and blonde- highlighted hair, but he knew he had successfully peeved her off.  
  
Her only response was a swift fist to his groin, and she continued on to number forty as Ace crumpled like a paper towel.  
  
"You're not messing around today..." groaned Ace, laying on the floor next to her. "Where's Amara?"  
  
"Forty-four... she's at... forty-five... karate... forty-six.. you worm."  
  
Ace knew that Lee got PE credit by attending Karate during this block, but Amara only went to karate sometimes and came to PE sometimes. He had no idea how that worked, nor did he care. What he wanted to know is why he had even tried to make conversation with Tori in the first place.  
  
"... fifty!" she announced triumphantly, collapsing to the gym floor. She lay there, catching her breath and noticed that her sweat was soaking right through her T-shirt. Her hair was getting soaked as well.  
  
"That looked like fun," said Ace.  
  
"Shut up, Ace. I'm hitting the showers."  
  
"Can I come?"  
  
Tori got up and turned to walk off, but not before stepping on Ace's back, getting a satisfying crack before she left. She entered the change room and walked across the tiled floor, grabbing a towel on her way by. She disrobed and stepped into the inviting warm water of the shower.  
  
(Stupid, egomaniacal, perverted... loser, she thought to herself, referring to Ace. I can't believe he even has the nerve to speak to me after the whole Yami/Hikari thing. He is kinda sweet, though...)  
  
She shook her head, erasing the previous though from her memory and flapping water off of her wet hair at the same time.  
  
(No! If I don't defeat him, the scientists might take Salamon away from me. I MUST defeat him!)  
  
Tori stepped out of the beige shower stall and wrapped the towel of the same color around her breasts so that it dropped down to below her crotch. Wrapping it up tight enough so it wouldn't fall off, she walked back to the locker area and opened her PE locker. She grabbed her clothes, watch and D- Volver.  
  
"Ow!" she hissed, dropping the D-Volver to the ground as she touched it. "What was that? A static shock?"  
  
She glanced at it curiously and then decided to shrug it off as nothing as she went to get dressed, unaware she had just been infused with the largest amount of Shadow data yet...  
  
- - -  
  
At Lunn's karate school, Lee was practicing break-falls on the mats by himself. Two other boys were sparring at the other end of the sanctum, while Amara and Tammy were doing the same in another area. They were all wearing the white karate uniform of the Lunn dojo, and were allowed in to train even though Master Lunn was away.  
  
"Only one day til the tournament... gotta practice..." mumbled Lee to himself, break-falling one more time before dropping to the mat. He decided that was enough for now and went to get a drink from his water bottle.  
  
"Happy birthday, Lee!" shouted Tammy, jumping over to him and giving him a hug. He hugged the blonde girl back, although his thoughts were really focused on Alison right now.  
  
(She's not going to come tonight, I know it...)  
  
"Thanks Tammy," he said, distracted. Amara walked over to them, her hands behind her back and smiling innocently. Her dark brown hair definitely stood out in her white karate uniform.  
  
"Hey Amara, aren't you gonna say happy birthday to Lee too?" asked Tammy. Amara rolled her eyes. Tammy may have been her only friend since she was ten, and her only other friend right now was Tori... but Tammy could still be really annoying to her.  
  
Amara walked over to Lee, who smiled nervously. He was still uncomfortable being around her since she was a Yami Chosen.  
  
"Here's your present, birthday boy," she whispered into his ear. "I'm gonna go to your party tonight... and if your neglecting girlfriend doesn't show up, I'll give you the good time she should have."  
  
She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and walked away with Tammy, the two of them giggling like... well... girls. Lee rubbed his cheek where she kissed him.  
  
(Okay, that was strange. I know she can read my mind and all... but I hate when she pries into my personal thoughts like that... Ali will come. I know it.)  
  
- - -  
  
Nathan glanced around the halls of RTC, wearing sunglasses as was his new idea for no one would see his black eyes. He had been searching for Ali for a good thirty minutes, completely forgetting what class she had at the moment.  
  
(Did she have web designing or literature...? What the heck did Lee tell me? I can't remember!)  
  
He went and peeked into the computer lab, and saw her in there, front row. She glanced up, seeing him and he waved and motioned for her to come hither.  
  
"Mr. Hedge, may I be excused for a second?" asked the brown haired girl. Unlike the other girls, Ali didn't care much for dressing fancy to impress people at school. The most expensive things she had on was the necklace and ring Lee had gave her.  
  
"Hey, Nathan," she said to him. "Let me guess, since I'm pissed at all of them except you, you've been sent to talk to me."  
  
"Nah," he disagreed. "I volunteered."  
  
"Ooh, charity," she said, sarcastically. "Well Lee and the others really let me down the other day. I'm not ready to forgive them just yet."  
  
"Ali, please come to our party tonight. It's unofficially Lee's birthday party, and it would really mean alot to him if you came..." pleaded Nathan. "I'm begging you here, Ali."  
  
"I... Nathan... if I tell you something... would you promise not to tell anyone? Not even Lee?"  
  
Nathan could see even through his sunglasses that Ali was very serious. She looked like she was about to cry. He nodded slowly in agreement and Ali pushed him away from the classroom door and back behind a few lockers.  
  
Nathan's sunglasses fell right off his face as his jaw literally hit the floor when Ali whispered something into his ear.  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
- - -  
  
Later that night, a bunch of cars lined the chilly streets of Tamur around Lee's house. Inside, a bunch of people had gathering in the living room, hallways and kitchen on the bottom floor, around thirty at least. There was loud music playing and lots of snacks and drinks. Some people were dancing in the living room, which had been cleared of furniture, while others were gathered around the surrounding areas, drinking and talking.  
  
"Whee-oo! Happy birthday to Lee!" shouted Ace, sliding down the railing from the upstairs to the bottom floor. He flew right off it and smacked into the hallway wall. Earnest and Harold, along with a few other people, glanced down at him.  
  
"Dude, that might not be good for your cerebellum..." said Harold to Ace.  
  
"Yeah yeah, I'll cerebellum you," muttered Ace, walking away from him and into the kitchen. "Jerk."  
  
Nathan was rummaging through the fridge, with Lee and Arik standing behind him.  
  
"What do you guys want to drink?" asked Nathan. "Beer or Pepsi?"  
  
"Beer. Duh," said Lee, as if Pepsi wasn't even an option. Nathan tossed a bottle at him and he caught it in mid air. "Thank god it's the weekend."  
  
"What about you, Arik?"  
  
"I'll just have Pepsi, thanks. You know how I feel about alcohol."  
  
"Yeah, you're a wussy," said Ace, walking over and giving Arik a noogie. He took a beer from the fridge as Nathan closed it.  
  
"James! Earnest! Get over here!" shouted Lee. Earnest left Harold and walked over, while James stopped chatting up a pretty blonde girl and headed in their general direction as well.  
  
"Shall we make a toast?" asked Arik as the six of them gathered.  
  
"This is to us! The dream team!" shouted Ace, raising his beer into the air. "Ain't no test, no Yami Chosen, no nothing ever gonna stop us!"  
  
The other five held a similar salute and then the conversation turned serious for a second.  
  
"We're missing a member of the dream team," observed Earnest, glancing around at the party. "Where is Alison?"  
  
"Obviously, she has better things to do than hang out with us," replied Ace. "Lee, I don't know why you even bother with her when you could have that fine Amara chick instead."  
  
"I... well..." began Lee, although he was hard pressed to find a response to that statement.  
  
"Why don't you just shut up, Ace?" growled Nathan, annoyed. "Don't talk about things you know nothing about."  
  
All five looked at him and he smiled innocently.  
  
"What's with the sudden concern, Nathan?" inquired Lee, curiously.  
  
"I--" began Nathan, but he stopped when he saw the door open. "What the-- why is Amara here?!"  
  
"Yami Chosen have breached the sanctum!" hissed Earnest.  
  
Earnest, Nathan, James and Ace turned to throw her out, but Lee stepped in front of them and held his arms open wide to block them.  
  
"Don't!" he protested. "I kinda invited Tammy and her."  
  
Tammy and Amara weren't the only girls who came in though, Tori was another recognizable one. Ace almost flipped.  
  
"What the shiznit is Tori doing here then?! I don't want her in my house!"  
  
"Guess she tagged along," said Lee. "Don't worry, even Tori isn't stupid enough to attack us in a room full of people. Just act like everything is normal, it's my birthday, remember?"  
  
"Okay..." sighed Earnest, James, Ace and Nathan at once, wondering how many times Lee was gonna use that one today. The four of them left to go do their own thing again.  
  
"They are still kids like us, with gifts like us. They just got theirs the wrong way," Arik said to Lee. Arik had been quietly sipping his Pepsi the entire time. "If we can make a friendly connection with them, maybe it will quell the fighting."  
  
"Exactly. And they're hot."  
  
"That too."  
  
Tori left Amara and Tammy to go do something else, and the two girls walked into the kitchen to join Arik and Lee.  
  
(Aren't you going to say hi?) projected Amara into his head.  
  
Lee was too busy looking at Tammy. This was the first time he'd seen her outside of karate and she looked damn good wearing a black button-up shirt that was unbuttoned half the way, along with a matching skirt and boots.  
  
"After seeing you so much in white, it's hard to picture you in black," said Lee to her.  
  
"Just call me Ms. Domineering," replied Tammy, helping herself to the fridge. "Where's your pop?"  
  
"Don't like beer either?" asked Arik.  
  
"Nope."  
  
"We should talk."  
  
Arik and Tammy walked out of the kitchen, leaving Amara and Lee alone.  
  
(Don't ignore me!) hissed Amara at him. Lee yelped a little, since the message hurt his head a bit.  
  
"Hello, Amara. Find your way here, alright?" he asked, a little forced.  
  
"Yeah I did," she replied sweetly. "I see Alison didn't make it."  
  
"She'll show up."  
  
"Give her until eleven. If not, you're mine."  
  
Amara pointed at the clock, which read 10:00 PM and went to mingle with the crowd. Lee gulped nervously.  
  
(I want Ali to show up more than anything in the world... but if she doesn't... I think it just might be over for us...)  
  
- - -  
  
Meanwhile, Tori had found her way upstairs, where no one was allowed except for going to the bathroom. Someone stumbled out of the bathroom and passed by Tori, but she gave him no notice. She was looking for something.  
  
"Ugh... man... why is thinking so hard tonight?" she groaned, leaning against the hallway and massaging her temple. "Doesn't matter... I gotta do what I came here to do..."  
  
She shook off the feverish feeling and pressed on, opening the door to Ace's room and looked around the messy chamber. She walked over to his dresser and fumbled through a pile of clothing until she found what she was looking for.  
  
(Ace's D-Volver. Perfect. Say good-bye!!!)  
  
She held it as far back as her arm would stretch and smashed the D-Volver against the wall with all her strength. But nothing happened. She frowned and bashed it off the wall repeatedly, but the stupid thing just wouldn't break!  
  
(What? It should've broke! Looks like I'll have to find another method of destroying it... but it will be too suspicious if I stay here...)  
  
Tori dashed across the hall into Lee's room and found his D-Volver, taking it as well. She glanced at the last bedroom upstairs.  
  
(Yes, Nathan has a D-Volver too, doesn't he? Well I'll snatch that one as well... and then I know! I'll go throw them in the river!!! )  
  
- - -  
  
Downstairs at the party, Nathan, Tammy and Arik were busy cleaning up a broken lamp that someone smashed. It was 9:30 PM now and Lee was getting anxious waiting for Ali to arrive.  
  
"She's going to come, Lee," James tried to reassure him. But Lee just wandered off to the kitchen. James rolled his eyes and followed Lee.  
  
"Look, Ali knows that we didn't miss her concert on purpose. Maybe she was just acting angry to prove a point. I don't think she'd let you down on your birthday."  
  
Lee sighed and glared at James.  
  
"Go away James."  
  
"Yeah okay," replied James, annoyed. "Happy birthday, loser."  
  
Earnest and Harold were still standing in the hall with another kid from RTC, talking about cars, when Earnest saw Tori run downstairs and head for the door rather quickly. Ace was walking by and Earnest grabbed his arm and yanked him over.  
  
"Ah! What do you want, Ernie?"  
  
"Isn't she a Yami Chosen?" asked Earnest, pointing at Tori. Ace nodded as he watched Tori slip her shoes on and leave. "Well she just came down from upstairs and headed right for the door."  
  
Ace glanced up the stairs in deep thought.  
  
"What the hell would she be doing-oh no..." he gasped.  
  
Ace dashed upstairs and noticed his door was open. He looked inside and saw his D-Volver was gone. His eyes widened and he ran downstairs, crashing into the hallway wall again and bolted out the door, grabbing a coat and his shoes on the way!  
  
"Tori!!!" screamed Ace. "Get back here!!!"  
  
Tori, already halfway down the street, heard Ace and took off as fast as she could. Ace caught a glimpse of her under a streetlamp and gave chase! Tori pulled out her Yami D-Volver and summoned Salamon to the area.  
  
"Yes, Tori?"  
  
"Take care of Ace. Shinka now!"  
  
"Salamon Shinka... KAZEMON!!!"  
  
The fairy warrior took to the air and flew up high so that Ace wouldn't be able to see her. Tori grinned and continued to run in the other direction. Ace continued to chase her, feeling he was catching up.  
  
"Tori thinks she can outrun me! I guess after two months of track and field she hasn't learned her-aah!"  
  
Ace was flung backwards onto the cement by a hurricane that shot out of nowhere! He glanced up to see Kazemon land on the pavement in front of him. The fairy smiled triumphantly and glared at him through her visor.  
  
"Oh boy, it's Skankmon..."  
  
"Your time is up, Ace," said Kazemon. "HURRICANE-"  
  
"DIAMOND STORM!!!"  
  
Kazemon was interrupted in her attack by dozens of small diamond shard that shot over Ace's head and smashed into her! She screamed before taking a tumble onto the street. Leila leapt over Ace as well, tackling Kazemon and rolling across the street with her.  
  
"Ace! Get going!" shouted Earnest. "I'll handle things here!"  
  
Ace nodded and left Earnest and Leila to fight Kazemon. He ran through an intersection and glanced around at the three other streets she could've run down.  
  
"Should've known it wouldn't be that easy... now which way do I go?" he asked himself. He began rubbing his arms, since his was freezing out and glanced at the three possible routes Tori could've taken.  
  
(D-Volvers aren't exactly easy to destroy by my recollection, so she'd probably have to fry them or dump them in water-- the river!)  
  
Ace turned and ran down the left path from the intersection, praying that really was the route Tori took. He dashed past some people who were walking the other way and saw Tori waiting to cross the street at a crossing.  
  
"I've got you now!"  
  
"Ah! Shit!" she shouted. She ran across anyway, despite the light being red. Ace ran up and noticed she almost got hit about four times, so he decided to wait for the light to change.  
  
(Come on... come ON... turn green!)  
  
The light did as Ace commanded and he ran across as fast as he could. Up ahead, he could see light reflecting off the shimmering river that flowed near the outskirts of the city. Tori was still ahead of him though!  
  
"Tori! Please stop!" he pleaded, as a last resort. She didn't listen and Ace noted similar behavior yesterday from Jeska. (I wonder if she has Shadow data in her...)  
  
Ace knew there was a bridge ahead that went over the river and it led to central park, where they used to hang out back when they were in high school. They actually fought many evil chosen there. Ace needed a way to catch up to her!  
  
Then he saw it, someone left their bike outside a general store when they went in to get groceries. He had no choice. He grabbed the bike as he ran by and leapt on it, peddling with all his might.  
  
"Hey! Give me back my bike!" shouted a man's voice from behind him.  
  
"I'll return it, don't worry!"  
  
Ace was definitely gaining on Tori now, just as she was approaching the bridge. He biked up next to her and she glared at him.  
  
"Give me those D-Volvers!" ordered Ace.  
  
"Eat cement!" she growled back, attempting to push him off the bike. The bike began to wobble and Ace became unstable! So instead, he leapt off the bike and tackled Tori to the ground! He looked up and saw the bike fly over the bridge into the river.  
  
"Man... did I ever cut that close..." he gasped, relieved.  
  
"You're not out of hell yet!" she shouted.  
  
She flipped over and kicked him right in the side of the head! He groaned and winced from the pain, but managed to snatch the three Hikari D-Volvers from her belt where she'd chained them. He fell back onto the wet grass, holding his head, but laughed triumphantly, showing her the D-Volvers he snatched.  
  
"That what a nice try, Victoria. But you just can't win against me," said Ace. Tori laughed, almost evilly as she pulled herself off the wet grass.  
  
"Hey kid! Where's my bike!?" shouted the man from the corner store, who had just caught up to them.  
  
"Oh Ace, you're doomed and you don't even know it. Because now..." began Tori, sounding very devious. She pulled out her Yami D-Volver and pointed it at the man. "... become a Digimon!!!"  
  
The man looked at her oddly, wondering what a 'Digimon' was... but then suddenly he began to clutch his ribs in pain and groan weakly. He staggered backwards and exploded in a shower of data... becoming... Myotismon!  
  
"Dude! Is that a -- I've got to stop talking to Harold -- vampire!?" exclaimed Ace, backing away from Tori and Myotismon.  
  
"Yes! It is! And now he'll kill you!" yelled Tori, laughing maniacally.  
  
"Alright. I'm going to be running this way now."  
  
Ace turned and dashed over the bridge into central park. The blonde vampire was still inspecting his new body when Tori ordered him to take off after Ace. Unlike Meramon and Ray, Myotismon listened to Tori and spread his cape, hovering into the air. Ace dashed in the mess of flora and fauna located in the park and Myotismon swooped down to look for him.  
  
Ace dove to the ground and grabbed his D-Volver, bringing DemiTyrannomon to the area. DemiTyrannomon looked around, confused.  
  
"Aw man, Ace. I was just eating!"  
  
"I'm in big trouble, Demi! Can you sense any Shadow data around here?!"  
  
DemiTyrannomon concentrated, his meal forgotten. After a moment, he nodded frantically.  
  
"Yes, a lot more than we saw yesterday too!"  
  
"That's what I was afraid of..."  
  
- - -  
  
Back at the party, Lee was leaning on the counter staring at the clock. It turned 9:45 and he gave a heaving sigh.  
  
(I'm not actually going to have to go through with what Amara said... am I...?)  
  
"Yo Lee! Where did Earnest and Ace go?" asked Nathan, walking into the kitchen. Lee shrugged.  
  
"They probably just abandoned us like Alison did..." he sighed.  
  
"Lee, there's something I think you should know..." began Nathan, but he was cut off as Tammy came running into the room. The blonde girl was grinning as she stared at Lee.  
  
"Yes, Tammy?" asked Lee.  
  
"Ali's here."  
  
- - -  
  
"GRISLY WING!!!"  
  
Myotismon released a swarm of bats into the small cluster of trees in central park, hoping they would flush Ace out of there. Tori crossed the bridge and warped Kazemon to her location. Kazemon was panting and fairly beat up.  
  
"Have fun with the fox girl?" asked Tori.  
  
"Oh yeah. It was a blast," answered the fairy, sarcastically. She straightened her hair and looked at Tori. "What do I have to do now?"  
  
"Help Myotismon destroy Ace," she ordered.  
  
Myotismon glanced down at the forest, wondering why his bats hadn't done their job. He could hear them deleting in there, so he figured an opposing Digimon was the culprit. Then he heard some shouting.  
  
"DemiTyrannomon Shinka... DRAGONMON!!!"  
  
Dragonmon flew upwards out of the forest, directly at Myotismon, who braced himself for an attack. Dragonmon charged fire in his mouth as he charged the vampire lord.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!" he bellowed, firing it directly at him. Myotismon simply dodged to the side and Dragonmon began to circle him, about to attack again.  
  
"HURRICANE KICK!!!" yelled Kazemon, kicking him in the back! Dragonmon snarled from pain and flew forward in the air!  
  
"Where the heck did she come from!?" exclaimed Ace, watching from his hiding spot in the forest. "Earnest didn't do his job after all!"  
  
"CRIMSON LIGHTNING!!!"  
  
Dragonmon was slashed across the face with the energy whip that Myotismon projected from his palm and sent plummeting into the ground of central park. He groaned as he left an imprint in the short soggy grass area. Ace gasped as both Myotismon and Kazemon closed in on him.  
  
"No! Dragonmon! Go to Perfect!!!" he screamed, thrusting his D-Volver in his fallen partner's direction. Dragonmon began to glow, lighting up the night-covered park. Both Myotismon and Kazemon stopped in their flight, hovering above him to see what would happen next.  
  
"What?" gasped Tori. "Ace can't have his Perfect form! He has to lose! I must win!"  
  
"Dragonmon Shinka... METALDRAGONMON!!!"  
  
The improved, armored Dragonmon leapt out of the dirt and flapped his metallic wings, propelling himself high into the air and positioning himself above Myotismon and Kazemon. They glanced up, startled by his appearance.  
  
"AERIAL INFERNO!!!" he bellowed, blasting Kazemon with a large flame pillar and knocking her to the ground. Myotismon flew upwards and spread his cape.  
  
"GRISLY WING!!!"  
  
Myotismon sent dozens of bats at MetalDragonmon, but they didn't affect him at all. He simply opened his chest compartment and aimed at the vampire.  
  
"DRAGON MISSILES!!!"  
  
Myotismon was blasted dead-on and deleted. The man who was his host body appeared, unconscious and began to fall, but MetalDragonmon swooped in and caught him, setting him on the ground. Ace emerged from his hiding spot and face Tori, who was still at the other end of the park.  
  
"Well, how was that Tori, you Shadow infested psycho?"  
  
"This isn't over! If you can go Perfect, so can I!" she screamed, thrusting her D-Volver at Kazemon in the same fashion Ace did for Dragonmon.  
  
Kazemon began to glow and evolved into another female humanoid Digimon, but this one appeared to be much stronger than her Adult incarnation.  
  
"Kazemon Shinka... ZEPHYRMON!!!"  
  
"Oh crap..." gasped Ace. "She's just as powerful as you!"  
  
"No, Ace!" shouted MetalDragonmon back to him, standing his ground while facing off against Zephyrmon. "Since she's infused with Shadow data, she's FAR more powerful!"  
  
"We're screwed then! There's no way we're going to survive this!!!"  
  
- - -  
  
Back at the party, Amara glared at Ali as she walked into Lee's house. Ali blew a raspberry at her and the girl with darker hair growled and left Lee's house in a huff.  
  
(Tomorrow, Alison... tomorrow is your final day...) she thought to herself to cheer herself up.  
  
Ali walked into the kitchen, where Lee, Nathan and Tammy were standing. She gave Lee a hug and he hugged her back.  
  
"Ali... what's going on?" he asked. "You've been acting so strange lately..."  
  
"I know where this is going..." muttered Nathan to himself. "Come on Tammy, let's go back to the party."  
  
Nathan pushed Tammy out of the room and Lee looked down at Ali, who let go of him.  
  
"Lee..." began Ali, not looking at him. She just kept staring at the floor, letting her hair hang over her face. Lee put his finger on her chin and lifted her face up so she was looking at him and she looked like she was going to cry.  
  
"What? What is it...?" he asked softly.  
  
"I'm pregnant," she finished, as quickly as possible to get it out of the way. Lee froze on the spot and stared at her.  
  
"You mean: 'I'm pregnant, haha, just kidding, happy birthday!' ... right?"  
  
She shook her head and for the first time in a long time, Lee felt like HE was about to cry.  
  
- - -  
  
TO BE CONTINUED... 


	12. Rain of Jealousy

"Run that by me again?"  
  
"You heard me, Lee. I'm pregnant."  
  
Lee blinked once and then just stared at Ali in a totally uncomfortable silence. Even though there was loud music playing and people were shouting and talking in the next room, they couldn't hear a thing. Ali fumbled her fingers through her light brown hair as she nervously waited for his reaction. This was not going to be pretty.  
  
"I... uh... I'm the father right?"  
  
Ali fell over.  
  
"Yes, Lee! Of course you're the father!" she whispered into his ear, almost like a threat. "How can you joke at a time like this?!"  
  
"Uh well gee, Ali! You waltz in here after barely talking to me for a week and tell me you're pregnant! How do you expect me to react!?" shouted Lee.  
  
"WHAT'S THAT?! YES LEE, I WILL TURN THE MUSIC UP!!!" yelled Nathan loudly from the living room, signaling that they were being too loud. Ali and Lee both sweat-dropped.  
  
Lee grumbled.  
  
"Look, Ali. Can we talk about this later maybe? Like tomorrow?" he asked, getting frustrated. Ali glared at him, giving him a look that all women give men when they say something stupid.  
  
"Yes Lee, if the apocalypse was coming, would you put THAT off until tomorrow too!?"  
  
"If it was being bitchy, I would."  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
Ali slapped Lee across the face and turned on her heel, storming out of his house. Lee rubbed his cheek and stared at the door as she slammed it. Nathan, Tammy, Arik and James peeked around the corner.  
  
"That didn't go well did it?" asked Nathan.  
  
"I'm going to bed," growled Lee, leaving them and storming upstairs.  
  
"Lee, we have a karate tournament tomorrow! Don't forget!" Tammy shouted to remind him. He ignored her and stomped into his room, shutting the door behind him. He looked around, confused. Something was off.  
  
"... Where's my D-Volver?"  
  
- - -  
  
At Central Park, under the dim light of the moon hanging in the night sky, a shining new Perfect Digimon had made her presence known. Zephyrmon had two harpie-like wings unlike her fairy predecessor and her mouth was covered by a small mask now showing her eyes to the world. The female Digimon hovered in the air in front of Tori, who stood there, Yami D-Volver in hand, laughing crazily thanks to her infusion of Shadow data.  
  
"Oh, Ace! Now is the time of your demise! So commands the Shadow!!!"  
  
Ace made a defensive pose and glared at Tori. His main man, MetalDragonmon, was ready to fight Tori.  
  
"The Shadow are dead! The only thing that exists now is extra data inhabiting poor people like you, Hieshi and Jeska!"  
  
"But that's where you're wrong!" shouted Tori. She was talking big, but was really exhausted. The Shadow was taking a lot out of her. She wiped the cold sweat off her forehead so she wouldn't freeze due to the cold air. "Now, Zephyrmon... rip him to pieces!!!"  
  
"HURRICANE GALE!!!"  
  
Zephyrmon blasted MetalDragonmon with a huge gust force, sending him flying back and smashing right through a large water fountain centerpiece in the park. He groaned and attempted to stand up, but she was already hovering in front of him.  
  
"PHOTON ORBS!!!"  
  
Zephyrmon blasted two energy balls right into MetalDragonmon's face, sending him careening back through the park even further, ripping up the landscape as he slid! He lay on his back after sliding, hoping it was over, but she appeared above him again and flew downward, stomping on his stomach!  
  
"MetalDragonmon, hang in there! Don't get beat up by a wom--ahh!" screamed Ace as Tori came up behind him and clutched him by the throat. The Shadow data was in full effect on her and she slammed him face first up against a tree!  
  
"Ace, you always hurt the ones you love... and right now I love you to DEATH!" she growled.  
  
"Wah! Tori! Come on, don't do this!!!"  
  
Suddenly Ace felt his neck released and looked behind him to see Leila hurl Tori a couple dozen feet across the wet grass of the park. Leila glanced at her disapprovingly.  
  
"Tool."  
  
"Ugh... you guys are just in time..." groaned Ace as Earnest ran over to help him up. Earnest had his long hair done up in a ponytail to keep it out of his way, so he could see Zephyrmon and MetalDragonmon going at it.  
  
"I'm sensing large amounts of Shadow data here," Leila told them. "That Digimon is too powerful for MetalDragonmon to handle."  
  
MetalDragonmon attempted to fly into the air, but Zephyrmon jumped above him and kicked him in the head, knocking him back to earth.  
  
"You don't say," replied Ace, sarcastically. "The question is what can we do about it?"  
  
"DRAGON MISSILES!!!" bellowed MetalDragonmon firing the two large missiles from his chest compartment directly at Zephyrmon!  
  
"PHOTON ORBS!!!"  
  
Her two small orbs collided with his missiles right at the mid-section between their two bodies and the ensuing explosion covered them both! Ace, Earnest and Leila covered their eyes as the gathering winds almost blew them off their feet.  
  
When the dust settled, both Salamon and DemiTyrannomon were laying unconscious on the park grass. They glanced over at Tori, who was still collapsed on the ground from where Leila hurled her. Ace let out a sigh of relief.  
  
"This is getting worse and worse each time..." gasped Earnest. "The Shadow data in her drove her almost completely mad."  
  
"We need to find wherever the Shadow data is coming from... and cut them off at the source," said Ace.  
  
- - -  
  
"At the source?" asked Irvine, watching Ace and Earnest from a hidden camera in Tori's D-Volver, which was laying on the grass. "Why you poor fool, you'll never find where our 'source' is."  
  
"Tori failed just like the others," growled Lunn, walking in. "I'm sick of this! Allow me to initiate Chosen X!"  
  
"Not yet..." said Irvine, smiling as if he was amused by something. "Tori is incompetent, but she did almost defeat Ace. Amara has a grudge against Alison, who doesn't even HAVE a partner."  
  
"So? Amara is the one Yami Chosen I got to pick, don't destroy her mind too!"  
  
"No. Amara's mind is going to be flooded," contradicted Irvine. "She is the most powerful of them all, she just needs to have her potential FORCED out of her!"  
  
- - -  
  
Ali strolled down a street slowly the next morning with her hands in her pockets and staring at the ground. Her light brown hair that hung down past her shoulders was messy, signaling that she hadn't slept much. She sighed as she headed for her mom's apartment.  
  
"How the heck am I going to tell her...?" Ali asked herself. "It's not like I can put this off forever..."  
  
She looked up at the sky and was almost blinded by the bright sun. She grunted and covered her eyes.  
  
"I wish I could..."  
  
Ali reached some apartment buildings that she and Lee used to live in. Those were some good times. She strolled up the stairs, taking her sweet time getting to the top. She reached it and bit her lip before praying and pressing the doorbell.  
  
A woman with very short brown hair and still wearing her pajamas greeted her. She looked at Ali curiously.  
  
"Alison, you didn't say you were coming over..."  
  
"Oh mom!" shouted Ali, burying herself in her mom with a huge hug. Her mom looked surprised and then rubbed her back to comfort her.  
  
"Alison... come in and tell me what happened..."  
  
And after telling a story, Ali's mom just would not stop staring at her in horror. Her only daughter was pregnant... at nineteen!  
  
"... and that's how it happened!" finished Ali, sitting on a sofa embroidered with flowers and nervously sipping some milk.  
  
"Haven't you and Lee ever heard of... protection?"  
  
"Yeah, oh no, mom, that slipped our mind. I let him do me without protection!" snapped Ali, annoyed that her would always act like she didn't know what she was talking about. "It must have broke or something."  
  
"I'm still amazed that you're doing it with Lee. You two have known each other since you were--"  
  
"Mom! Can we please not talk about that aspect of how this happened!? I want to know what I can do... what I should do..."  
  
"Uhm. Well you could keep the baby. Or you could get an abortion..."  
  
"No doctor is slicing my stomach open."  
  
"Look, Alison, what do you expect me to say!? You just show up one day out of the blue and announce you're pregnant! How did Lee take it?"  
  
"He didn't appear too amused. He promised me we'd talk today."  
  
"Where is he right now?"  
  
"At a karate tournament."  
  
"You have to understand that his reaction is normal, especially for a boy his age. He'll come around..."  
  
"I hope..."  
  
- - -  
  
At the Lunn dojo, dozens of spectators were gathered in bleachers around the mats that were usually used for sparring. The room was large and more than well suited for a karate match. Ace and Nathan were among the crowd.  
  
"Dude, I-- wah!" shouted Ace, slapping himself. "I hate that Harold guy!"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Cuz he says dude all the time!"  
  
"So do you!"  
  
"But... he says it in a non-cool way. While I keep my regular Ace mojo working when I say it."  
  
"Ri-ight..." replied Nathan, weirded out. "Thanks for getting my D-Volver back, I ain't letting go of this thing ever again."  
  
Nathan patted the D-Volver hanging from his dragon belt and Ace nodded, holding up his and Lee's D-Volvers.  
  
"No problem. But seriously, dude... the Shadow data is a serious problem. Earnest had to take Tori to the hospital. I was too beat up so I got to crawl home. After this tournament, I gotta give Lee his D-Volver back."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Do you know why he's been acting so pissy late--"  
  
"No. No I don't," replied Nathan quickly. Ace eyed him suspiciously.  
  
"You know something, don't you?"  
  
"I know that here comes Master Lunn," said Nathan, pointing at the karate master as he entered the main room. Lunn did a slight bow to the audience.  
  
"Family, friends and observers of my karate students..." began Lunn, talking into a small microphone pinned to his dojo uniform. "The thirteenth annual Lunn Karate Tournament is about to begin, pitting my eight top students against each other in a battle for superiority!"  
  
"A battle for superiority?" asked Nathan. "Wow, that's sort of... uhm..."  
  
"Intense?" suggested Ace.  
  
"Yeah. I don't like this guy for some reason..."  
  
"Now let's meet them!" shouted Lunn, outstretching his arm to the door he came in from. Twelve girls and boys, all around Lee's age walked in a two by two fashion. Lee was in the front, while Amara and Tammy were in the row behind him.  
  
"The competitors are chosen completely at random, so the first match is... Lee Trainer vs. Matt Fisher!"  
  
Lee downed the poor boy easily.  
  
"Tammy Rehbein vs. Jocelyn Matthews!"  
  
Tammy annihilated the klutzy girl.  
  
"Ryan Abel vs. Darren Radford!"  
  
The boy named Darren obliterated the one named Ryan.  
  
"Amara Aquilla vs. Christi Hopkins!"  
  
Amara didn't give her a chance.  
  
After the first four were knocked out, Tammy, Amara, Lee and Darren were allowed to take short break while Lunn did some more talking to the audience.  
  
"Hey! The three of us all made it here!" shouted Tammy, running over to Lee. The blonde girl leaned over Lee's shoulder while he took a drink from the water fountain. "Hello? Earth to Lee?"  
  
"I'm in no mood to talk, Tammy," growled Lee, turning and walking away from her. Tammy looked rejected while Amara simply crossed her arms and looked at him.  
  
(What's up with him...?)  
  
"Amara, you don't look too good, are you sure you can fight?" asked Tammy, curiously.  
  
"Yeah, just got a bit of a fever is all... I can win this thing and then go rest..." answered Amara, groaning and rubbing her forehead. Lunn overheard them and walked over.  
  
"Tammy, you are fighting Darren next."  
  
"I'll kick his ass!" she shouted, running over onto the mat to face her opponent. Lunn turned to Amara.  
  
"Amara, how exactly are you feeling?"  
  
"I've got a fever is all," she replied, annoyed. "Why does everyone care about me all of a sudden?"  
  
Amara turned away from Lunn to go sit on the bench, and the karate master gave her a long stare.  
  
Irvine used the Shadow data after all... this will be an unfair tournament... I just hope she doesn't go insane...  
  
A few moments later, Tammy had defeated her opponent, dropping him to the ground and advancing to the final round of the tournament. Lee and Amara squared off next, each at the opposite sides of the mat.  
  
"You can do it, Lee!" shouted Ace from the crowd. "We didn't come out here to watch a loser! ... although we've seen about five of them, but that's not the point."  
  
"Yeah, you've got the power of awesome on your side!" added Nathan.  
  
"Heh..." was all Lee responded, his mind still cloudy.  
  
(I wonder whom I'll end up fighting...) thought Tammy as she leaned against the wall to watch.  
  
"Ready to lose it all?" asked Amara, bowing to him. Lee did the same and spoke back to her in a very unenthusiastic, monotone voice.  
  
"You'll just cheat and win."  
  
"Nope, I promise you no cheating in this. I've got too much of a fever to use my telepathy anyway," she answered.  
  
"If you have a fever, then why are you competing?"  
  
"To kick your ass."  
  
"Then being it on."  
  
Amara ran at Lee, her karate uniform unable to get in the way of any move she could make. She leapt into the air and span around, preparing to kick him in the face, catching Lee totally off-guard!  
  
Lee took a foot to the face and did a break-fall backwards onto the mat. He stretched his foot up, kicking Amara right in the lower back, causing her some pain. He then tripped her and leapt back up onto his feet.  
  
"Don't think you've won yet!" she shouted, leaping back to her feet as well.  
  
"Hmm..."  
  
"Why are you acting so weird today?" inquired Amara. She strained to use her powers to read Lee's mind, but the Shadow data in her was interfering. She did get a small piece of his thoughts, though. "What? Ali's pregnant?"  
  
"I--"  
  
Amara, upon thinking about Ali, was reminded of the promise she made to Crystalmon to wipe one of the Hikari Chosen out. Then the Shadow data began to kick in, driving her to that mission.  
  
"What is going on down there?" asked Ace, curiously.  
  
(Why have they stopped fighting?) thought Lunn.  
  
"Say farewell to her, Lee."  
  
Amara turned and dashed out the doors of the karate dojo, surprising everyone. Lee looked on, wondering what she meant.  
  
"Oh no... Ali!"  
  
Lee turned to run after her, but on his way out the door, he noticed he was missing something.  
  
"I still don't have my D-Volver..."  
  
"Yo, Lee!!!" shouted Nathan, standing up in the crowd. "Catch!!!"  
  
Nathan hurled Lee his D-Volver and Lee caught it in mid-air, then proceeded to dash out the door after Amara.  
  
"Thanks Nathan!"  
  
Lunn walked into the center of the mats, unsure of what to say to his murmuring audience.  
  
"I... uhm... guess Tammy is the winner..."  
  
"Screw that!" shouted Tammy, running out the doors as well. (Those two always seem to be keeping something from me, well now I'm going to figure out what it is!)  
  
- - -  
  
Ali was walking home from her mother's apartment, still depressed. She took the usual route back to RTC, through the abandoned power plant parking lot. Tamur used to run on nuclear power, but had since converted to electric plants. Lots of kids came here to hang out and do bad things, but Ali simply used it as a means of getting back to her dorm room quicker.  
  
"Hello Alison."  
  
Ali turned around to see Amara standing behind her, arms crossed. Ali gasped, wondering what Amara was doing there.  
  
"Yes? Can I help you?"  
  
"You can, actually. You see, you are a Hikari Chosen and I am a Yami Chosen, that makes us enemies," began Amara, stepping towards Ali and brandishing her Yami D-Volver. Ali looked at her Hikari D-Volver in her pocket, but unfortunately didn't have a partner.  
  
"So?" she asked, hoping to find a way out of this incident. She backed away from Amara through the large parking lot.  
  
"So... not only are you keeping us from reaching Trinity Server, you're keeping me from something else. Lee. Or you were."  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" asked Ali, confused as to the meaning of 'were'.  
  
"Lee, I'm afraid, does not wish to be around you anymore now that you've ruined his life," Amara told her. "No partner, no help for you, you're useless. And easy pickings for me."  
  
Amara released Crystalmon from her D-Volver and Crystalmon saw Ali, finally happy to get some action in.  
  
Shall I rip her to shreds? asked Crystalmon.  
  
"Please do."  
  
Ali's eyes widened with fright and she turned around, bolting away. The crystallized cat laughed and ran after her on all fours with Amara following close behind.  
  
(I need to get out of here! Must hide somewhere!) thought Ali, frantically searching for where she could go. (Aha! The power plant! That place is huge!)  
  
(She's heading into the power plant,) Crystalmon told Amara, since Amara was still unable to read minds due to the Shadow data.  
  
Ali dashed in through the broken down door and headed down the first corridor to the left. Toxic waste was leaking everywhere, but she was paying no attention to it as she dove into a control room and ducked under a desk to hide herself.  
  
(Please don't let them see me, please don't let them see me...)  
  
Amara and Crystalmon came to the intersection of hallways and glanced around, trying to figure out which way Ali went.  
  
"Where did she go?"  
  
(I'm not sure. These walls are metal and I can't scan through them.)  
  
"Damnit! We need to destroy her!" growled Amara. Suddenly she got a piercing headache and clutched her head. "Argh! What is wrong with me!?"  
  
(The Shadow data Irvine put in her is reacting to her telepathy... but that shouldn't happen,) thought Crystalmon to herself. (There is something strange about this girl I have yet to discover...)  
  
Crystalmon then began to talk to Amara again.  
  
(Amara, evolve me into Rubymon and I'll flush her out of here.)  
  
- - -  
  
Ali was still crouching under the control console, praying for Amara to go away. She didn't hear any noise and sighed with relief.  
  
"Geez... this is definitely not my week..." she groaned.  
  
(RUBY BLAZE!)  
  
She saw a stream of fire burst overhead, obviously having come through the wall. She gasped and ducked down again.  
  
"Did we get her? No? Keep firing then!!!" she heard Amara yell.  
  
"Damn it... they're trying to flush me out... ooh," she whined, burying her head in her knees. "I'm not going to live long enough to see my baby..."  
  
"Never say never, Ali!" shouted a small electronic voice from her D-Volver. Ali gasped and looked down at it.  
  
"Octopimon! Oh my god, is that you?!" gasped Ali in amazement. "How did you escape?"  
  
"Some bad men were uploading a something from our server and I escaped that way! Now let me out of here!"  
  
Ali pressed a button on her D-Volver, and the floating purple octopus Digimon floated out. She was about as big as Ali's head, though she was only a Child level. She wrapped her eight tentacles around Ali in sort of a hug.  
  
"I'm so glad to see you again..." gasped Ali, hugging the Digimon tightly. "This is the only good thing to happen to me all week..."  
  
"Thanks, Al. Now let's show those bullies!"  
  
"You don't understand, Octopimon... these aren't the old possessed Chosen we used to fight... these are the new Yami Chosen. They're much more powerful. This one, Amara, can even read our minds. I don't think we stand a chance against her."  
  
"Won't know unless we try, will we?" asked Octopimon, remaining enthusiastic.  
  
"Right..." replied Ali, giggling a little. She had missed her partner's good mood; perhaps having Octopimon away was what always made her depressed. "Let's take some names."  
  
"Octopimon Shinka..."  
  
Octopimon began to glow and transformed into a bigger octopus Digimon, still staying the color purple, but getting a green dot on her forehead. She probably stood as tall as Ali's chest.  
  
"... MEGAOCTOPIMON!!!"  
  
Rubymon floated along, the vixen with red hair checking each hole she made with her flames, looking for Alison. She peeked into one hole and got a surprise.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!"  
  
Rubymon was blasted in the face with electrical ink and sent crashing backwards through another steel wall! She smashed into a vat of nuclear waste and it exploded, splattering all over the room!  
  
Ali and MegaOctopimon stared in disbelief.  
  
"Well that was bigger than I expected," commented Ali.  
  
"Rubymon! You can't lose now!" yelled Amara from the hallway.  
  
Out of the smoke of the explosion shot Rubymon again! She tackled MegaOctopimon and they flew past Alison, smashing out of the wall of the power plant and crashing back down in the parking lot! Amara turned on her heel, running to rejoin them outside. Ali simply leapt out the hole in the wall.  
  
(Man, this is a feeling of excitement I haven't had for a while...) thought Ali.  
  
MegaOctopimon wrapped her tentacles around Rubymon's legs and slammed her down on her back! The pavement splattered where she fell, leaving a good dent in it.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!" bellowed MegaOctopimon, blasting Rubymon through the pavement again. Rubymon extended her hands and absorbed the ink into them.  
  
"What the--"gasped Ali.  
  
"RUBY REFLECTION!!!"  
  
MegaOctopimon was hit and electrocuted by her own ink! She flew backwards through a lamp post, but used four tentacles to brace her fall and bounce her back onto her feet.  
  
"RUBY BLAZE!!!"  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!"  
  
The two blasts collided in the center and sputtered out in a mess of flame and electricity. Both combatants breathed heavily as they looked at each other. Amara came running out of the power plant and overlooked the situation.  
  
"This won't do... Rubymon, Shinka to Perfect!" ordered Amara.  
  
"What!? You can do that?" asked Ali, frantically.  
  
"Shut up! Your life is forfeit! Once you're dead, Lee will love me and not you!"  
  
"You're sick!" exclaimed Ali. "You have to be pumped full of Shadow data to be acting this crazy! You can't force someone to love you!"  
  
"I told you to shut up!" growled Amara, thrusting her D-Volver at Rubymon. Dark energy poured out of it and into Rubymon, triggering her evolution.  
  
"Rubymon Shinka..."  
  
Rubymon stayed the same height, but her hair changed from a burning red to a shimmering blue. Instead of a bodysuit, she wore a bit more revealing blue armor that covered her shoulder, breasts, crotch, knees and was wearing boots and gloves too. Two wings sprouted from her back, enabling flight and a scythe appeared in her right hand.  
  
"... SAPPHIREMON!!!"  
  
"Oh great..." gasped Ali. "These new guys are tougher than I was told... well Octopimon, go to Perfect too!"  
  
Ali thrusted her D-Volver at MegaOctopimon, but the purple octopus remained in the same form. Ali blinked and shook her D-Volver.  
  
"What's with this? We could evolve all the way before!"  
  
"I haven't done it in so long I need to get readjusted!" MegaOctopimon told her. "Don't worry, I can still take this floozy!"  
  
"Sure you can," said Sapphiremon, now able to talk just like she could in Adult form. Her form of Crystalmon had to make contact through telepathy since she didn't have a mouth. (Amara, take that dumb Chosen out and we'll be done here. I'll hold off her partner.)  
  
Got it.  
  
"You don't scare me! INK SHOCK!!!"  
  
"AQUA REVOLT!!!"  
  
Sapphiremon's water pressure attack blasted right through MegaOctopimon's ink stream and smacked the octopus Digimon back a few feet. MegaOctopimon was well-adjusted to water, so a water attack wouldn't do much damage to her.  
  
"Don't think you're invincible, you worthless creature," growled Sapphiremon, brandishing her scythe. "SAPPHIRE SCYTHE!!!"  
  
Sapphiremon swung her scythe at MegaOctopimon, but she utilized her stretchy tentacles to bound out of the way. Sapphiremon turned in step and headed after her.  
  
"Alright, Ali. This is how it goes. You don't struggle, I won't make you suffer."  
  
"I can take you, bitch!" shouted Ali back, annoyed at Amara's attitude. (What am I talking about?! She's a high-class karate student and I... know how to sing. Great.)  
  
Amara ran at Ali and elbowed her in the face, knocking her to the ground! Ali was bleeding and not able to take much punishment from a girl like Amara, especially when she was infused with Shadow data. She wiped blood off of her cheek.  
  
"Lu-lucky hit..." she groaned.  
  
"Right. You're finished," said Amara.  
  
Sapphiremon slashed MegaOctopimon with her scythe and sent her crashing onto the pavement next to Ali, reverting her to her child form of Octopimon. The little purple Digimon was unconscious.  
  
"Both of you," added Sapphiremon, landing back on the ground next to Amara.  
  
"Finish off this tool, then I'll have what I want," ordered Amara. Sapphiremon nodded and took a few steps towards Ali, who lay on the ground, frozen with fear.  
  
"TECHNO SCISSOR CLAW!!!"  
  
TecKuwagamon swooped in suddenly out of nowhere and smashed Sapphiremon with his claw! The female warrior Digimon was flipped backwards and landed on her back! She was completely unconscious.  
  
"What the hell--?" cursed Amara, glancing at the assailant of her partner. The large metal insect landed on the parking lot in front of Amara, with Lee standing atop. Lee was still in his dojo uniform and had his arms crossed, glaring at Amara.  
  
"Lee! I thought you'd never come!" exclaimed Ali, happily.  
  
"This wasn't supposed to happen!" exclaimed Amara in a more annoyed tone. "I thought you were mad at Ali! She ruined your life! I was doing you a favor!"  
  
"I don't want any favors from you," growled Lee, angrily. "You mess with poor Ali ever again and I'll put you in a world of hurt. Now get out of here before I decide to let Tecky do so."  
  
Tecky snapped his mandibles together menacingly and Amara glared at him, then Lee and then Alison.  
  
"This isn't over... I'll be back with the others and we'll get you all! Choosing Ali over me is something I'm going to make you regret!"  
  
Amara ran over to pick up Crystalmon and darted away from the parking lot. Lee hopped off of Tecky and landed next to Alison, hugging her.  
  
"Oh my god Ali, are you alright...?"  
  
"Yes, I'm fine... now," she said, hugging him back.  
  
"You're bleeding," he told her, taking his sleeve to wipe the blood off her cheek. She smiled softy as she noted his concern for her.  
  
"I really didn't think you'd come save me... I thought you were done with me..."  
  
"No, I swear I'll never abandon you," he said, pushing her away from him a bit so she could see he was sincere. He patted her stomach gently. "No matter what trials await us."  
  
"Thank you..."  
  
Ali smiled and Tecky reverted to Kokuwamon. She picked up Octopimon and the four of them headed off back to Lee's house.  
  
"Lee... she's a psycho... a psycho..."  
  
"It's not her fault, Ali. Although her motivations may be a little fueled against you in particular. I'd blame the Shadow... or more specifically, whoever is feeding the Shadow into Amara, Hieshi and the others..."  
  
"Why do I have a feeling it won't be long until we find that out?"  
  
At the far end of the parking lot, on the other side of the chain-link fence that blocked it off, Tammy rested her hand against the fence while staring at Ali and Lee.  
  
"What the hell did I just see...?" she gasped. 


	13. Preaching Damnation

"Amara and Lee were... what were they doing?" gasped Tammy, still awed by the sight. The blonde girl narrowed her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself. Her karate uniform wasn't the best protection from the freezing December weather. She turned and headed away from the power plant parking lot.  
  
"They... there was that beautiful one with the two huge wings... and the gigantic bug... and that octopus... what WERE they? Why did they keep that from me...?"  
  
Tammy crossed the street, caught up in her own thoughts and turned a corner into a dark alleyway. Night was beginning to fall, so she figured she'd better get back to the dojo fast and get her clothes. Not to mention her tournament trophy.  
  
"Going somewhere?" asked a voice from the shadows of the alley. Tammy stopped in her tracks and looked around frantically.  
  
"Huh, who's there?"  
  
"Just some friends," said another voice from behind her. Both of them belonged to adult males as far as she could tell. She assumed a fighting stance.  
  
"Any of you sickos touch me and I'll put you in a world of hurt!" she growled. Then she could hear yet a third new voice.  
  
"Now now Tammy, we just want you to come on a little journey with us."  
  
"Master Lunn?" she gasped, recognizing the particular voice. Lunn smashed her across the head with his fist and she collapsed onto the dirty ground. Green and Rathjen walked over to him.  
  
"Real subtle, Lunn," said Green, sarcastically.  
  
"Just put her in the van," growled Rathjen.  
  
"Yes... this time we won't make any mistakes like we did with the others..." added Lunn, looking down at the unconscious blonde girl.  
  
"But, what was wrong with them?" asked Green, curiously.  
  
"They have free will."  
  
- - -  
  
"You're PREGNANT?!" exclaimed Ace. Lee and Ali nodded, although they weren't happy about it. Ace had jumped about two feet off the couch when they told him.  
  
"What a way to start our Sunday morning by making us feel good," Ali told him, accusingly. Ace smiled innocently as he was scolded by the brunette. Lee rolled his eyes and went to the kitchen to pour some cereal.  
  
"Well, how do you expect me to react?!"  
  
"How do you think I reacted?!"  
  
Ace slunk back onto the couch, afraid of the iron slap of Alison.  
  
"So..." he began, trying to change the topic. "DemiTyrannomon, Octopimon and Kokuwamon are all here. There's no use running them back out to Earnest's village again, cuz we're only going to lose money on gas."  
  
"You're right," butted in Lee from the kitchen. "Anyone want cereal?"  
  
"Me," said Ali, heading in there. "I'm so hungry lately..."  
  
Ace and Lee looked at each other.  
  
"Oh god," she groaned. "I'm gonna get fat."  
  
"Oh god..." groaned Lee. "I forgot that too."  
  
"Why don't you just get an abortion?" asked Ace.  
  
"You sound like my mom, Ace," sighed Ali, stuffing her face full of Cocoa Puffs. "Would YOU want an abortion?!"  
  
"Oh, nice question Ali. I'm not a seahorse."  
  
Ali fell over. Lee decided it was time to change the topic before Ali had to kill Ace.  
  
"We're missing someone," began Lee. "Where's Nathan at?"  
  
"He went to church with James."  
  
Lee blinked.  
  
"Why the hell would they go there?! Don't you remember what Father Flannigan did to me and James?"  
  
"Aww, poor you," said Ali, scratching Lee's head. He looked up at her for comfort and her face turned angry. "More cereal. Now."  
  
"Hey, I didn't go," said Ace, turning on the TV. "They said something about something that I forget."  
  
"Oy."  
  
- - -  
  
"... and then the man was cast into the pits of hell for eternity!" shouted Father Flannigan, giving her early morning sermon. The bald man dressed in black priest robes had become more and more aggressive with his sermons lately. "Struck down by god, who condemns all sinners! You must repent!"  
  
James and Nathan were sitting in the second row of pus. James had his arms crossed, glaring at Flannigan. Flannigan used to do wrong things to James when he was younger, since priests aren't allowed to marry. Once told on, he was put into jail for six months until he was released under the condition that he continue to preach at the church.  
  
Nathan, on the other hand, was listening intently. He was wearing his sunglasses and scratched his black hair as Flannigan continued to preach.  
  
"The Shadow of the devil looms over us all! Some of us are more resistant to it, since we go to church and pray for our souls! But other heathens are not, and end up doing drugs or becoming convicts!"  
  
[i]I'm not very resistant...[/i] thought Nathan to himself, shamefully.  
  
{{{FLASHBACK to "Heroes No More"}}}  
  
(It was so hard... no, impossible to control myself...)  
  
"No... NO!" yelled Nathan. "You'll pay! You'll all PAY!!!"  
  
"What are you gonna do, Nathan?" asked Ace.  
  
"I'll show you what I'm going to do, Sam!" yelled Nathan back. Ace grunted at being called by his real name. Nathan became very silent and shut his eyes.  
  
"Let's go up there!" shouted Ace. He and DemiTyrannomon turned and ran to the fire escape stairs on the building that Nathan was standing on.  
  
"What's he doing? Meditating?" asked Arik. Earnest shook his head.  
  
"It's looks like he's chanting... a summon or a ritual..." gasped Earnest.  
  
Nathan began to swirl in darkness, but unlike Desiree, who transformed similarly earlier, he reveled in it. He was laughing insanely and letting it consume him entirely!  
  
"Why is he so evil now!?" asked Alex.  
  
"It's not his fault. The Shadow have morphed his mind" answered Earnest. "Though I'm afraid there will be no saving him now..."  
  
(I hurt my friends...)  
  
Shadow Nathan and X-Omnidramon (Ace) were still fighting like crazy in the skies. They were relentless and Nathan was definitely the more powerful of the two.  
  
"Hyper Blade!" shouted Ace. He took the sword off his back and swung it at Nathan who kicked it, sending it flying out into the city. Ace cursed to himself and leapt backwards, trying to create distance between himself and Nathan.  
  
"Yes, fire your little cannon. Alot of good that's going to do you." said Nathan, laughing. Ace cursed again.  
  
"Damn! He knew what I was going to do!" shouted Ace.  
  
"That's because you're predictable." said Nathan. "I, however, am not! Observe my power!"  
  
The Shadow-layered skin on Nathan began to bubble, and suddenly, hundreds of little throwing stars burst out of it! Ace gasped in both surprise and terror. The stars shot at Ace, buzzing and whirring around him, slashing him hundreds of times! They were tiny cuts, but hurt more than one big sword would. Tiny spurts of blood were dripping from him, he was barely able to gather enough energy to talk.  
  
"You... asshole..." groaned Ace, weakly.  
  
Nathan flew over and clenched both his fists together, hitting Ace with all his power! Ace flew backwards in the air, managing to stay airborne... but seemed unable to do little more than that.  
  
(But in the end I paid the price... when Lee finished me off...)  
  
{{{END FLASHBACK}}}  
  
"Yo, Nathan..." said James, shaking him. "You look stressed..."  
  
"I... uh... no, I'm fine."  
  
"May god be with you," said Flannigan, ending his sermon. The people in the chapel got up and began to leave. Nathan and James just sat there, though. Flannigan looked at them, curiously. He never thought he'd see James in his chapel again.  
  
"Mr. Willington, what an unexpected surprise... to what do I owe the pleasure?"  
  
"You never paid the money to me that you were fined. I want it. Now," growled James.  
  
"For someone who is so rich, you sure have alot of demands for money. I paid half the amount," said Flannigan. "Let me be in peace."  
  
"No!" shouted James, grabbing the father by his robes threateningly. "I'm going to make sure you pay, dearly. Pay it by tomorrow, or I'll get my dad in here."  
  
James turned to leave and Nathan just turned and followed him.  
  
"There's no answers in money, James! Only prayer!!!" shouted Flannigan.  
  
"Prayer..." sighed Nathan. "Yeah right..."  
  
James and Nathan exited the chapel into the cold winter weather. James sighed and kicked a statue of an angel.  
  
"James, you alright? You're never going to get over that, are you...?"  
  
"Thanks for coming with me, Nathan. I need to be alone, though. Mind going home alone?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
"Alright. See ya..."  
  
James put his hands in black cloak and turned in a different direction, walking off. Nathan did the same, but in the direction of his home. He walked down the streets, thinking about what Flannigan said in his sermon.  
  
(Am I going to be forever cursed with this mark of... the devil... on me?) he thought, referring to his black eyes. (Damn the Shadow to hell...)  
  
"Lovely sermon, was it not?" asked a female voice to the right of Nathan. He glanced over into an alleyway, where a familiar red-haired Yami Chosen was sitting on a dumpster, kicking her legs into the air. She was wearing a black t-shirt that hugged her form well and somehow still managed to be standing the cold.  
  
"You're Jeska... one of the Yami Chosen..." gasped Nathan, pointing at her.  
  
"And you're Nathan... one of the Shadow's tools," she replied with a smirk on her face.  
  
"I-- I am not!" he protested.  
  
Jeska jumped off the dumpster and walked slowly over to Nathan, checking him out. She put her finger on his chin and lifted it up a bit. She smiled.  
  
"Yes you are."  
  
She swatted his sunglasses off with her other hand and he growled, already knowing what she had revealed. He glared at her and she raised her eyebrow, interested.  
  
"Ooh, that is definitely your color. Are those contacts?" she asked. "Oh no wait... I forgot. They're an alteration of your body caused from when you tried to kill your friends and destroy the Server."  
  
"It's none of your business," he growled, getting slightly annoyed at her. She wriggled her away around his skinny body and began to feel his ass. He jumped a little. "Aah! What are you doing?!"  
  
"Oh and look what's down here..." began Jeska. She pulled a Hikari D- Volver out of the pocket on his butt. "A light D-Volver for such a dark child..."  
  
"My D-Volver suits me exactly, Jeska!"  
  
"Really..." she began, drolly. "Or could it be that you're the only one who doesn't have your partner back because it doesn't suit you?"  
  
Jeska turned and whipped his D-Volver at the wall, but it simply bounced off and flew back into her hand.  
  
"I'm supposed to destroy these things, but it seems they're indestructible," she said to him. "You however, are not. But I don't feel like being violent with you right now..."  
  
She paced around him some more and he simply stood there, wondering where she was going with this.  
  
"No... I think you should join us. You would fit in perfectly with the Yami Chosen, Nathan..." she said. She leaned over so that her lips were nearly pressed up against his. "We have LOTS of fun."  
  
"I.. uh..." began Nathan, thrown off by Jeska's repeated flirting with him. It was just an act to get him to join, but he didn't know that. "I... can't... my friends are..."  
  
"Your friends are worthless," she said, moving behind him again and rubbing his shoulders. She then leaned over so her head was on his shoulder. "You're the only meaningful one. You're the only one of them who knows what TRUE power is."  
  
"No... I don't..."  
  
"Nathan, your Shadow eyes are just a sign that you were meant to be with us. Join us and I swear they will go away. Our leaders can extract Shadow data... they can make you normal again..."  
  
"Make me normal...?"  
  
"I don't see why you would want too, who cares what society thinks anyway? They're all just a bunch of a bastards cloned from each other. But if it what you really want..."  
  
"..."  
  
Nathan was getting very confused. Between Jeska's massage, the thought of being normal and the thoughts of betraying his friends. He was at a crossroads, and two trains were flying at him equally fast. It was time to decide which train would hit him the least hard.  
  
"The only one without a partner yet... you can tip the balance of power in either favor," she told him. "I'll give you until tonight to contemplate your decision. Rest assured we will be meeting up then."  
  
Jeska tossed his Hikari D-Volver back at him and he caught it. He turned and walked away, without saying anything. The redhead crossed her arms and grinned, watching his feet as he walked off.  
  
"Of course, you'll be getting a little push into your choice..." she said to herself, withdrawing her Yami D-Volver.  
  
- - -  
  
Nathan walked up to their house and opened the front door. He could smell supper cooking, so he figured Alison was over. He could hear the sounds of video games coming from the living room. He couldn't get the thought of his confrontation with Jeska out of his head, but he decided to at least pretend there was nothing wrong with him.  
  
"What's this? No take out pizza?" he asked, walking onto the tiled floor of the kitchen to see Ali poking at something in the stove with a wooden spoon.  
  
"Maybe... I think I burned the soup..." she replied, eyeing and still poking it.  
  
"How can you burn soup?"  
  
"Oh, I find my ways."  
  
Nathan threw his coat on the floor and smiled at her as she picked up the pot off the stove and began to pour it into bowls.  
  
(Looks like Ali and Lee made up. That's good...)  
  
Nathan looked into the living room, where Lee and Ace were playing video games on the big screen and laughing. They looked at him.  
  
"Hey, Nathan! You wanna play?!" shouted Ace.  
  
A controller went flying at Nathan's head and he caught it in his left hand, although it almost knocked him flat over. He laughed and headed for the living room.  
  
(These are my friends... I can't betray them... can I...?)  
  
- - -  
After supper, Nathan retreated upstairs to his room. Downstairs, the door opened and Arik walked in. Ace, Lee and Ali looked up at him from the table, they were still eating.  
  
"Arik, you didn't call! We're in the middle of supper!" shouted Lee. "Get outta here!"  
  
"Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to Nathan..."  
  
"Nathan? Sure. He's upstairs," directed Lee, pointing to the stairs. Arik nodded and headed up them, morphing into Lee upon getting to the top.  
  
(Oh these fools are so easy to deceive,) thought Magemon in Lee's form. (Now I just have to do what Jeska told me to do...)  
  
"Yo Nathan, you up here?!"  
  
"Yeah, you know that," replied a voice from Nathan's room. Magemon peeked around the door to see Nathan laying on his bed and staring at the roof. Nathan's room was very dark without any lights on and messy with clothes and junk littered all over the place, even on the unmade bed where he lay.  
  
"Yeah, well, I was thinking why you don't have your partner back yet..."  
  
"You were?"  
  
"Yeah, and I think it's the Shadow's fault," accused Magemon. "You're not actually a Hikari chosen... I think you're actually supposed to be a Yami Chosen..."  
  
"What are you saying?" asked Nathan, sitting upright in his bed instantly.  
  
"I'm saying... go join them for a bit and then come back to us once you get Kotemon back... then we'll be ready to waste them," said Magemon. "It's a foolproof plan!"  
  
"Are you sure, Lee? Jeska was trying to get me to join them earlier, coincidentally..."  
  
"Then go for it! Kotemon awaits!" shouted Lee to him to inspire him. Lee turned and walked away, morphing back into Arik as he headed down the stairs.  
  
"Alright, see ya later!"  
  
"Bye Arik," said Lee, waving him off. Magemon left their house and walked around to the back of it, still in Arik's form and chuckled to himself.  
  
(Little does Nathan know that once his D-Volver becomes a Yami D- Volver, he won't be going back! Oh I love it when a plan comes together...)  
  
- - -  
  
Nathan slipped on his jacket and left the house for a walk at about nine PM. The dark sky loomed over him like a shadow that was waiting to strike. He didn't know where he was going, just that he knew Jeska would find him.  
  
(To become a Yami Chosen and get my partner... and get my eyes fixed... it seems like such a sweet deal, even Lee told me to do it...)  
  
Nathan walked over a bridge and stared into the reflection of himself in the water. He narrowed his eyes when he saw them. He saw a red-headed reflection walk up next to him.  
  
"Night is a beautiful time of the day..." said Jeska to him. "The only time when people don't notice you, isn't it?"  
  
Nathan didn't respond, he just kept staring into the water. He pulled out his Hikari D-Volver and looked at it intently. Jeska took a few steps away from him and flipped her hair behind her back.  
  
"Well, Nathan? What is your decision?"  
  
"I..."  
  
"You...?"  
  
"I decline your offer," he said, reluctantly. "I don't want to give up who I am... or risk ever falling into darkness again..."  
  
Jeska stared at him with her green eyes, almost insulted as he turned to walk away. Her stare soon turned into a glare and she snapped her delicate fingers.  
  
"I'm afraid you don't have much choice in the matter, Mr. Klentz. I tried to be nice, but it seems I'll have to use more persuasive methods..."  
  
Nathan suddenly walked right into a bigger man than him. He moved to go around, but the man smacked him backwards onto the ground. He yelped as he looked up and noticed it was a Digimon: Tawnosmon. The armored Digimon looked down at him, completely creeping Nathan out.  
  
"Jeska, I'm LEAVING," he said, trying to sound tough as he pulled himself off the ground.  
  
He turned to run away from Tawnosmon, but Tawnosmon leapt into the air, multiplying into twenty Tawnosmon, whom surrounded Nathan. Nathan had never encountered Tawnosmon before, so he didn't know most of them were projections.  
  
"What the hell is this?!" he exclaimed, secretly hitting the emergency button on his D-Volver. "Let me go!"  
  
"Nathan, you're the only Chosen without a partner, and I granted you a FAVOR by allowing you to join me!" shouted Jeska, still annoyed at Nathan. She hated when people didn't do things her way. "Orders were to kill you, but converting you would have been just as good. Now there is no choice. I offer you one last chance."  
  
"I say take your offer and stuff it!" growled Nathan. He kicked at the nearest Tawnosmon in self-defense and the image faded as he attacked it. "What?! It's a cheap copy!"  
  
"Not all of us!" said one Tawnosmon, grabbing Nathan by the arm and hoisting him into the air. "I'm the real McCoy."  
  
"Argh... let me go..." groaned Nathan as Tawnosmon held him into the air by his arm. It felt like his arm was separating from his shoulder. He gasped in pain.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!"  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!!!"  
  
The two blasts came flying out of the sky and both hit Tawnosmon, sending him crashing through the fence of the bridge and plunging into the river below. Jeska gasped with shock as TecKuwagamon landed in front of her, with Lee, Ali and Ace riding on his back.  
  
Dragonmon and MegaOctopimon landed on the other end of the bridge, near where Nathan was standing and rubbing his arm. MegaOctopimon was riding on Dragonmon's head. Lee, Ace and Ali leapt off of Tecky's back.  
  
"Yo, Nathan! You okay?" asked Lee. "What the hell are you doing out here anyway?!"  
  
"You're the one who told me to go!" shouted Nathan, wondering if Lee had amnesia. Lee cocked his head to the side.  
  
"Uh... ok, I get what happened. Jeska used her partner Magemon's shape-shifting ability to lure you out here..." guessed Lee, pointed at Jeska, who was getting fairly enraged by this interruption.  
  
"I'm sorry..." sighed Nathan, defeated. "I feel so useless without a partner... I'm like a walking target..."  
  
"Enough!" screamed Jeska. She turned swiftly and kicked Lee in the stomach, knocking him to the ground! She ran over and clamped her arm around Ace's neck.  
  
"Hey, hands off!" growled Ace, almost choking.  
  
"Let him go!" protested Ali.  
  
"Go munch carpet," snapped Jeska. She used her free arm to point at the three tense Adult Digimon. "Any of you Adults move and I'll snap his neck."  
  
"What the hell are you going to do?" asked Ace. Jeska whipped out her Yami D-Volver and held it to the air.  
  
"Tori and Ray may have been too stupid to do this, but this is how you wipe out THREE Hikari Chosen with ONE Hikari Chosen! Nathan, you insist on being all holy and good, do you? Well then prepare be struck down by my angel of purification! Become a Digimon!!!"  
  
Jeska pointed the D-Volver at Ace and he exploded in a burst of data with a violent scream. Ali covered her mouth with her hands and closed her eyes as Lee and Nathan watched on in horror. Dragonmon fizzled out and disappeared completely.  
  
"Where did he go?!" asked Nathan, frantically.  
  
"A Digimon can't have a Digimon partner. So he's been removed," said Jeska. "Now meet MAGNAANGEMON!!!"  
  
In Ace's place stood a fairly tall and powerful looking angel Digimon. The top half of his face was covered by a helmet. He had eight shining wings and drew a sword to hold in his right hand. He extended a shield on his other arm.  
  
"MagnaAngemon, a Perfect level..." gasped TecKuwagamon. "He is definitely in the higher class as far as Perfects go... Jeska sure knew what she was doing!"  
  
"That's a definite confidence booster," gasped Lee. "Why did she pick Ace to change though?"  
  
"Because neither of us can go Perfect and he can! Sounds like a strategy to me!" answered Ali.  
  
"Hmm hmm hmm..." chuckled Jeska. "Kill Nathan first, and then the other two!"  
  
MagnaAngemon turned and flew directly at Nathan, but he was blasted in the face by electric ink before he could touch Nathan! MagnaAngemon was pressed into the ground of the bridge by the force of the blast. MegaOctopimon continued to pour on the pressure as TecKuwagamon snapped his mandibles and flew in at him from behind.  
  
"TECHNO SCISSOR CLAW!!!"  
  
He slashed MagnaAngemon across the back, but it didn't even seem to affect him! He raised his shield so it was blocking MegaOctopimon's attack.  
  
"Oh no..." gasped Ali.  
  
"EXCALIBUR!!!" yelled MagnaAngemon, slashing TecKuwagamon and sending him flying back past the bridge and into Central Park, where Tori and Ace fought the other day. He then turned his attention to MegaOctopimon.  
  
"Damnit, I can't do anything!" growled Nathan, shaking his D-Volver. "Why am I so useless?!"  
  
"You're not useless, Nathan," said a small electronic voice. "At least not as far as I'm concerned."  
  
"Kotemon!" exclaimed Nathan, looking at the D-Volver excitedly as he saw an LCD picture of his partner.  
  
"What?!" shouted Lee, Ali and Jeska at once.  
  
"Yeah, Kotemon's back!" cheered Lee. "Now maybe we stand a chance against MagnaAngemon!"  
  
"This wasn't supposed to happen..." muttered Jeska under her breath. She saw Tawnosmon pull himself out of the river and lay down on the grass in Central Park, exhausted. "Maybe Tawnosmon can even the odds..."  
  
"EXCALIBUR!!!" yelled MagnaAngemon, sending MegaOctopimon flying back into the park as well. He then turned to Nathan, who had just released Kotemon from his D-Volver. The small kendo-using Child Digimon looked up at his opponent.  
  
"Let's fight like we used too!" shouted Kotemon.  
  
"Right!"  
  
"Kotemon Shinka... MUSYAMON!!!"  
  
Standing in Kotemon's place was a shogun Digimon decked out in old- style armor. He pulled a large sword and leveled it at MagnaAngemon's head.  
  
"Meet your executioner," growled Musyamon.  
  
"Not likely," snorted Jeska, noting Lee and Ali had run into Central Park to check on their partners. She followed, planning to use Tawnosmon to finish them off...  
  
"SHOGUN SWORD!!!"  
  
"EXCALIBUR!!!"  
  
The two of them locked blades and began slashing at each other with their swords! MagnaAngemon spread his wings and took off into the air, leaving Musyamon grounded. He then did a dive attack at Musyamon with his sword!  
  
"Get out of the way!" warned Nathan.  
  
Musyamon leapt out of the way just in time, which was a good thing too, since MagnaAngemon plummeted right through the bridge, leaving a hole in his wake.  
  
"That was too close for comfort..." sighed Nathan. Suddenly MagnaAngemon blasted his way upwards through another section of the bridge! "... and it's not over yet!"  
  
"GATE OF DESTINY!!!"  
  
MagnaAngemon began to make a circular gate materialize in thin air. Nathan and Musyamon gasped as they watched him do so.  
  
"What's he doing now?" asked Nathan.  
  
"Something very bad..." Musyamon replied.  
  
- - -  
  
"You two are useless," said Jeska to Lee and Alison. "Your child will be useless too."  
  
"How do you know about that?!" asked Lee, getting defensive and standing in front of Ali to protect her.  
  
"It's all around the school," answered Jeska, smirking. "You can thank Amara for that."  
  
"Oh my god..." sighed Ali, dropping to her knees. "My life is over..."  
  
"Yes, but not in the context you just said. Come forth, Tawnosmon!"  
  
Tawnosmon leapt over next to Jeska and Lee laughed at her, feeling more confidant now.  
  
"Tawnosmon is weak. He can't take both of our Digimon!"  
  
"Not even if he evolves?" asked Jeska, curiously.  
  
"Not even if he-- WHAT?!"  
  
The red-head jutted her D-Volver in Tawnosmon's direction and, sure enough, he began to evolve. Lee and Ali turned to get away from him and hid behind TecKuwagamon and MegaOctopimon.  
  
"Tawnosmon Shinka... TEFERIMON!!!"  
  
Teferimon looked exactly the same as Tawnosmon except with cooler armor on. Lee and Ali looked at him skeptically.  
  
"That's the big upgrade? I'm not impressed," said Lee.  
  
"Me either," said his girlfriend. "MegaOctopimon, lay him out!"  
  
After Alison's command, the purple octopus blasted electrical ink directly at the not-so-imposing Teferimon. The humanoid Digi raised his arms into the air while the ink stream soared at him.  
  
"PROTECTION SHIELD!!!"  
  
A barrier appeared in front of Teferimon, deflecting MegaOctopimon's attack away into the air! Lee, Ali, and both Digimon gasped.  
  
"Now you've seen a glimpse of what true power is..." chuckled Jeska. "It doesn't always lay in fists, but in tactics..."  
  
"I'd like to fist her," muttered Ali.  
  
"Err..." began Lee. Ali's eyes widened as she looked at him and then she beat him over the head with her fist.  
  
"Not like THAT!!! Perv!" hissed Ali. Lee whimpered and rubbed his head.  
  
"Ow! Yeesh, mercy mercy! Abuse!" whined Lee, afraid of Ali. He then turned his attention back to the battle. "That was a fancy trick, Jeska, but let's see how Teferimon handles TecKuwagamon!!!"  
  
TecKuwagamon spread his metallic wings and soared through the air, heading for Teferimon. Teferimon leapt into the air, right at Tecky!  
  
"DIGITAL CLONE!!!"  
  
Teferimon touched Tecky on the head and instantly morphed his molecules so that he was the spitting image of the metal bug! The 'new TecKuwagamon' flipped over his identical brother's head. All the observers gasped.  
  
"It's... just a copy... right?" asked Lee.  
  
"TECHNO SCISSOR CLAW!!!" yelled Teferimon, slashing Tecky and knocking him halfway through the park. Lee and Ali's jaws dropped.  
  
"He's got the power of a Perfect!" warned MegaOctopimon. "So he's stronger than Tecky should be!"  
  
"Oh joy to the world, we are so screwed..." mumbled Ali to the turn of 'joy to the world'.  
  
- - -  
  
"Nathan, get away!!!" yelled Musyamon. Nathan did as told and scrambled away from the bridge as MagnaAngemon's vortex began to pull Musyamon towards it. He jammed his sword into the bridge to use as an anchor, preventing him from being sucked in.  
  
"Geez, Ace!!!" yelled Nathan, calling out to MagnaAngemon with cupped hands. "Can you hear me in there?!"  
  
MagnaAngemon gave Nathan a quick glance and then turned back to Musyamon, who was trying his damnest not to be sucked into the portal.  
  
"EXCALIBUR!!!" yelled MagnaAngemon, leaping past the portal and diving down at Nathan, ready to impale him on the sword!  
  
"Nathan, no!" yelled Musyamon.  
  
"Ace, don't do it!!!" screamed Nathan. His D-Volver began to glow...  
  
"Musyamon Shinka..."  
  
Musyamon lost the sword and transformed into a cloaked demon Digimon whose face was hidden. He had a necklace with a pentagram on it around his neck and two red eyes that appeared from in the darkness of his hood.  
  
"... CHAOSMON!!!"  
  
The Perfect Chaosmon leapt in the same direction MagnaAngemon was heading, coming between the holy angel and Nathan! He aimed his palms at MagnaAngemon.  
  
"CHAOS FLARE!!!" he yelled, blasting fire directly in MagnaAngemon's face. MagnaAngemon was sent tumbling backwards through the air... and was sucked right into the Gate of Destiny!!!  
  
"Yeah, we killed him with his own attack!!!" shouted Nathan, triumphantly. "And you evolved to Perfect! Awesome!"  
  
The gate deleted and Ace dropped out of it, landing on the broken bridge. Nathan looked over to see two TecKuwagamon's grappling in Central Park.  
  
"I dunno what's going on there, but I suggest we check it out," said Chaosmon.  
  
- - -  
  
"MegaOctopimon, blast your ink to help TecKuwagamon out!" ordered Ali.  
  
"Uh... yeah... which one?" asked MegaOctopimon, confused.  
  
"Tecky, which one are you?!" yelled Lee at the two metallic insects, who were still grappling.  
  
"I am!!!" they both shouted back.  
  
"Oh this is classic," groaned Lee.  
  
"MOLTEN FLARE!!!" yelled Teferimon, blasting TecKuwagamon into submission with a flamethrower hidden in his claw. No one could tell it was Teferimon who was coming out on top, though. Except for Jeska.  
  
"Ah, my partner is doing so well for us..." she said to herself. "Once we get to Trinity Server, I'll finally be able to see what Wade discovered..."  
  
"Lee! Ali!" yelled Nathan's voice from the other side of the park. They turned to see Nathan and Chaosmon run up to the scene.  
  
"Wow, you got to perfect already?!" exclaimed Ali upon seeing Chaosmon.  
  
"Uh-huh. Uhm, which one of them is the bad guy?" asked Nathan, pointing at the bugs.  
  
"We're not sure," replied Ali. Nathan and Chaosmon fell over.  
  
"I know how to find out!" shouted Lee. "Tecky! Return to Child form!!!"  
  
The TecKuwagamon laid out on the ground returned to his Child form of Kokuwamon. Chaosmon dashed in at the other before he could see him!  
  
"Teferimon, watch out!" screamed Jeska.  
  
"SOUL EATER!!!" screamed Chaosmon, flying up and making Teferimon enshrouded in a purple mist. He then began draining energy from him!  
  
"No...!" growled Teferimon, morphing from TecKuwagamon into Chaosmon. "SOUL EATER!!!"  
  
They both began to drain energy from the other, staying in a stalemate lock of power. The two Chaosmon's were both trying their hardest, but neither were able to get ahead.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!" yelled MegaOctopimon, blasting Teferimon. He was flung into a tree! Chaosmon lowered his palm at the fallen copy of him.  
  
"CHAOS FLARE!!!" he shouted, blasting the tree and causing it to crash down on top of him. Jeska screamed and bit her lip.  
  
"Damn you, Nathan! None of this would've happened if you joined me in the first place!" she cursed. "I'll see to it that you all get yours!"  
  
Jeska turned and ran away from the scene, and all the Hikari Chosen gathered together and sighed with relief.  
  
"That was one of the toughest battles yet..." gasped Lee. "Jeska almost schooled us on her own..."  
  
"Is Ace alright?" inquired Ali. Nathan nodded.  
  
"He'll be up and chasing donuts in no time," said Nathan. "But what I'm scared of is... you've always fought the Yami Chosen one at a time and still narrowly won, right? Like, Hieshi alone could defeat Ace and Arik..."  
  
"Where you going with this?" asked Lee.  
  
"I heard Amara mumble something about them ALL getting us yesterday," said Ali. "If so, we could be in major crap."  
  
"That's what I was thinking," added Nathan. "And who knows what surprises they have in store for us next...?"  
  
- - -  
  
In the scientists' laboratory, Lunn, Green and Rathjen gathered around Irvine, who stood in front of a locked door. Irvine grinned as he began to speak to them.  
  
"Gentlemen... allow me to introduce you to... the sixth... and most powerful Yami Chosen...!" 


	14. Betrayal

Irvine and his three companions walked into the central control room of their base and all sat down at their meeting table, deciding it was time for a discussion. This Yami and Hikari thing had been dragged out for far too long, in their opinions. They would wait no longer to get into Trinity Server.  
  
"What now?" asked Green, impatiently. "I want to kill those damn children so we can get into Trinity Server and cure my wife!"  
  
"There's no evidence that Trinity Server will hold the cure for cancer, Albert..." said Rathjen smugly, cleaning his glasses on his vest. "But it's the best shot you've got. I wish to perform research on this strange world. When do we go?"  
  
"Gentlemen, please... calm yourselves..." their leader, Irvine, told them. "Lunn's new Yami Chosen is guaranteed for success."  
  
"That is correct. I handpicked her partner myself," replied Lunn. Everyone's attention turned to him. "Now we need a suitable test of her power..."  
  
"Look, I am the Dean of the college. I'll invite all the Chosen to a college activity tonight, but maybe we should send some aside..." suggested Rathjen.  
  
"Send Lee and James away," ordered Lunn.  
  
"Why those two?"  
  
"Because I want to see if we even HAVE to use her," Lunn told them. "We'll give our current Yami Chosen one last chance to defeat the weaker five Hikari Chosen: Nathan, Alison, Arik, Ace and Earnest."  
  
"Why are they weaker?" asked Green, curious.  
  
"Because Lee and James have specific rivalries with Amara and Hieshi that I wish to avoid tonight."  
  
"That sounds good. It's all planned then," said Irvine, nodding. "Rathjen, make sure it's somewhere out of the way, so no pedestrians will see the ensuing battle."  
  
"Of course. We will be heading to Trinity Server very soon, gentlemen!" shouted Rathjen. He and Lunn got up and left the room to make their plans. Green turned to Irvine, who looked somewhat nervous.  
  
"What's wrong, Irvine?"  
  
"You know how much Shadow data that new Digimon is made out of?"  
  
"How much?"  
  
"Crystalmon, Magemon and the others are only 30 % Shadow data. This new partner... is 95%..."  
  
Green's jaw dropped. That was definitely a dangerous number.  
  
"But... shouldn't that make it even more obedient?" asked Green.  
  
"That makes it a walking disaster..."  
  
"I'm so damn sick of Lee and Ali! Argh! Why can't I break them up?!" growled Amara, pacing back and forth in her dorm room. She kicked a basketball and it smashed right through her window, sending glass flying everywhere.  
  
_(Amara... we will get them. Last time, when I first went Perfect I was taken out by a cheap shot...)_ Crystalmon told her.  
  
"Crystalmon..." began Amara, sitting down on her bed and glancing at the broken window. "I keep feeling that soon everything is going to be like that window... shattered."  
  
_(You sense it too?)_  
  
"Yes... a great darkness is upon all of us... and I--"  
  
Amara was interrupted when she heard a knock on her dorm room door. She yelped, startled by it. Crystalmon went and his under Amara's bed as the brunette moved to the door and opened it. It was Dean Rathjen. Amara looked up through his glasses at his brown eyes when he spoke to her.  
  
"Amara, you've been invited to..."  
  
Ray and Tori looked up at Dean Rathjen as he spoke to them in the hallway. The two of them were anxious to get to the cafeteria, but he wasn't letting them go.  
  
"... an official RTC..."  
  
- - -  
  
Arik, Nathan and Ace stood at the door of Arik's dorm room after Rathjen interrupted them from their video gaming.  
  
"... extracurricular event. It will be worth..."  
  
Ali was pulled from her computer class to see Dean Rathjen. She yawned, getting little sleep that morning due to morning sickness from her pregnancy.  
  
"... quite a few extra credits. And of course, there will be lots of..."  
  
Jeska leaned against a locker, boredly bashing the back of her head into it as Rathjen spoke. The redhead didn't care much for parties or extra study, but credits were nice.  
  
"... food and beverages available. Think of it as a..."  
  
Earnest barely had time to get out of his car to head into RTC before Rathjen caught up with him and began giving him the same explanation.  
  
"... one-night course that will benefit you and look good on your resume. And all your friends will be there!"  
  
"Yes, I'll go," replied Earnest. "How could I pass up that opportunity?"  
  
Earnest rushed off to his first class, tying his messy black hair into a ponytail as he ran. Rathjen smirked evilly.  
  
"That's what they all said..."  
  
Lunn's dojo:  
  
Lee, James and Ali walked into the dojo later that day, since Lee needed to do his daily training. Ali and James tagged along to watch. The blonde boy put his karate uniform on over his regular clothing and kicked his shoes off. Ali ran her fingers through her long brown hair as she was explaining what Rathjen told her earlier.  
  
"... yeah, I got invited to this extracurricular thing," she explained. "Do you guys want to come?"  
  
"No can do," answered James. The boy with neat black hair looked down at his shoes in shame. "Me and my dad got a court session against Flannigan..."  
  
"Ah, that's nothing to be ashamed of, James," said Lee, patting James on the back. "I got Ali pregnant, that's something to be ashamed of."  
  
"Yeah, and thanks to that bitch Amara, the whole school knows," pouted Ali. "I almost wanna drop out of RTC now..."  
  
"Well don't. Things will get better," Lee reassured her. "I'll come with you tonight."  
  
"Lee!" shouted Master Lunn, decked out in his white uniform with a black belt. "Since you ran out of the tournament the other day, you have to come in late tonight and work with me. Sorry, but your other plans will have to be put out of the way..."  
  
"Uhm, is that okay, Ali?" asked Lee. She nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'll be there, Master Lunn. Sorry for disappointing you..."  
  
At that moment, Amara walked into the dojo. She gave Ali an evil death glare before walking over to Lee. Lee smiled nervously.  
  
"Yeesh, she really hates you..." whispered James to Ali.  
  
"I hate her too," whispered Ali back.  
  
"Uhm, hi, Amara... please don't hold that event at the power plant against me..."  
  
"Have you seen Tammy?" asked Amara, somewhat worried. "She's not here and her dorm room is empty."  
  
"No, I... haven't. Maybe she went to see her parents," suggested Lee. Amara reluctantly nodded, still worried about her best friend.  
  
"Yes... maybe that's what she did..."  
  
_(All the little dancing fools have no idea how set up they really are...)_ thought Lunn, looking at the four of them. He grinned and turned away.  
  
A dirty old car drove up to Willington Manor in the country and was stopped at the gate. Rathjen glanced along each individual spike of the gate until his eyes reached a guard booth. The Spanish guard; Enrique, got up from his chair and walked over to Rathjen's car.  
  
"You got business here?" asked Enrique, talking into Rathjen's window.  
  
"Yes, I'm the Dean of a local college and I have an interesting offer for Mr. Hieshi Willington. Can you deliver a message to him for me?"  
  
"Si."  
  
"Tell him at six o'clock tonight to head up to 70 Norton Road, further out in the country. It will be something definitely worth his while..."  
  
"Uhm, yeah, but what are you--"  
  
Rathjen backed up and turned his car to drive further out into the country where 70 Norton Road was located. He grinned as he drove with one hand and used the other to speak into a cell phone.  
  
"Irvine, I've told the Yami Chosen to arrive an hour before the Hikari Chosen... I'll brief them and prepare the ambush..."  
  
"Excellent... but get out of there before the Hikari Chosen arrive. Don't need your identity revealed now..."  
  
"Why? There's no possible way we can fail!" protested Rathjen, wanting to stay and witness the battle.  
  
"Yes and what if our project goes awry? Do you want to die with the rest of them?!" snapped Irvine. Rathjen growled and gripped the wheel tightly as he drove.  
  
"You're right... I'll brief the Yami Chosen and then be on my merry way..."  
  
Night came quickly and each of the Hikari Chosen found out they were invited to the extracurricular activity (with the exceptions of James and Lee). Earnest was the only one of them with a car, so he offered to drive them all. Earnest was driving, with Arik in the passenger seat. Ali, Ace and Nathan were in the back.  
  
"Hey Ernie, did you know Ali's pregnant?"  
  
"ACE!" shouted Ali, reaching over Nathan to smack him in the face.  
  
"Well you ARE!"  
  
"I'll kill you."  
  
"She's moody cuz of it too," whispered Ace to Earnest. Earnest rolled his eyes and kept driving, having no patience for Ace's mouth. Ali didn't have much either.  
  
"Now, I really am going to kill you," she said, unbuckling her seatbelt and attempting to tackle him, Nathan caught her by the stomach and suspended her in the air before she got get to Ace. Ace was huddled to the back of the car door, afraid for his life.  
  
"Could we not fight?" suggested Nathan, still holding Ali in the air. Ali reluctantly nodded and sat back down in her seat.  
  
"Hmph."  
  
"Does anyone actually know what this activity is?" asked Arik as Earnest began to drive up into the mountains surrounding Tamur. Nathan and Ace shrugged.  
  
"All the Dean told me was that it will be worth alot of credits and look good on our resumes. Seems like good enough reason to go," Earnest told them.  
  
"Like you need a resume, you've already got a part time job at that restaurant," said Arik.  
  
"Part time is the key word there," replied Earnest, chuckling.  
  
"I work at the radio station in RTC and I make good spending money," added Ali. "But I suppose when I move out of the dorms I'll need to make more money to support myself."  
  
"Just make Lee do it, you two are already hitched together by the hips for life," muttered Ace.  
  
"What was that!?"  
  
"I said you're beautiful!"  
  
"Uh..." mumbled Earnest loudly, interrupting them. "Is THAT 70 Norton Road?"  
  
The others looked at where their pony tailed friend was pointing at, and it wasn't a building of any sort. It looked like an roman coliseum... and it was HUGE!  
  
"Why is there something like that out here in the country?" asked Ace. "Shouldn't it be like... in Italy?"  
  
"Don't you have ANY culture?" snapped Ali at him like he was a moron. "That's just a replica, it's used for the yearly Shakespeare play put on by the Drama Club in town. They made it look like a coliseum so that it can seat hundreds of people!"  
  
"Uh... yeah... I knew that..."  
  
Earnest pulled up at the front and saw a few other cars there. They all looked at each other as they exited his automobile.  
  
"Looks like we aren't alone," said Nathan.  
  
"Anyone else getting a bad vibe?" asked Arik, looking around nervously.  
  
"I am too," answered Earnest. "But let's go in anyway..."  
  
Earnest walked in first, with the other four following him. They entered the coliseum to see the entire place was dark and empty. The area to perform had to be about as big as two football fields, with hundreds of seats encircling it. Earnest and the others walked until they were a good distance in, but still didn't see anyone.  
  
"Hello?!" shouted Nathan with cupped hands. He heard his own echo. "Hey, I echoed."  
  
"Boobs!!!" shouted Ace, just to hear it echo. Ali fell over.  
  
"You just couldn't resist, could you...?" she groaned.  
  
Suddenly, one of the four huge spotlights encircling the coliseum turned on, shining down on the quintet. They all groaned and covered their eyes from the bright light.  
  
"Why, hello fools!" shouted a female voice from a few meters in front of them. Another spotlight, this time from behind the Hikari Chosen, shone down on Amara, who was standing there with Sapphiremon. Sapphiremon was her Perfect level partner, covered in armor and holding a scythe.  
  
"Amara!" hissed Ali, immediately taking offense. The boys' eyes adjusted to the bright light and they looked her over too. She was wearing a silver jacket along with silver pants, as was her favorite. She raised her arm with three bracelets on it and pointed directly at Ali.  
  
"This time you're mine, Alison! I'm going to smash your face in!"  
  
"I think you're retarded!" snapped Ali back. "This time I got all my friends to back me up!"  
  
Earnest, Nathan, Arik and Ace turned to walk away from Amara, and Ali followed them.  
  
"Don't even bother attacking, we're leaving," said Ali. "One on five..."  
  
"Oh?" asked Amara, in a tone that caused them all to stop in their tracks. They could sense something ahead. "I got friends too!"  
  
Another spotlight shone down in front of their new direction, revealing Jeska (with Teferimon), Ray (with IceDevimon), Hieshi (with Rievermon) and Tori (with Zephyrmon). All four Yami Chosen looked extremely confidant with themselves.  
  
"Oh great..." groaned Ace. "It's the freak crew..."  
  
"Better watch you call a freak, or you might find yourself missing a tongue," Tori told him.  
  
"This time, we're ALL here, and we're ALL going to kick your ass!" shouted Ray. "I may be the only one on this team without a Perfect, but you guys have TWO members without a Perfect!"  
  
"Not that it matters... cuz I can whip you all myself," added Hieshi.  
  
"Yeah we'll see if you take me out with a cheap shot this time!" growled Earnest, getting defensive.  
  
"You're all going down, cuz you're all useless," Jeska said. "We're more motivated to win than you are."  
  
"And why is this, all of a sudden?" asked Nathan. The red-head grinned and flipped her hair out of her face.  
  
"That's none of your business," she replied, tartly.  
  
"I'm sick of this talking..." growled Rievermon. The demon Digimon was getting impatient. "Can I eviscerate them now?!"  
  
"Go right ahead," said Hieshi, waving his arm out to the quintet of Hikari Chosen.  
  
"You want a fight?! Fine, you got one!" shouted Ace, summoning DemiTyrannomon to the area.  
  
Ali, Nathan, Earnest and Arik subsequently did the same with their partners. Then they all began to evolve...  
  
"Good!" shouted Amara. "Evolve them! We've all danced in fire long enough! It's time for us to escape the flames!"  
  
"You're the one who'll burn!" yelled Nathan.  
  
"DemiTyrannomon Shinka... DRAGONMON!!!"  
  
"Octopimon Shinka... MEGAOCTOPIMON!!!"  
  
"Leila the Renamon Shinka... LEILA THE KYUBIMON!!!"  
  
"Kotemon Shinka... MUSYAMON!!!"  
  
"Bouncemon Shinka... RACERMON!!!" "If you're done..." said Amara, fake yawning. Ali turned to face her.  
  
"You're mine! I'm sick of your attitude and I'm sick of you!" she yelled. "Get her, MegaOctopimon!"  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!" yelled MegaOctopimon, blasting Amara halfway across the coliseum and knocking her to the ground.  
  
"Hey!" exclaimed Sapphiremon. "That's dirty fighting!"  
  
"You all DIE NOW!!!" screamed Rievermon, already on the attack. "DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
Rievermon swung a long claw at all four Adult Digimon, sending Dragonmon, Leila, Racermon and Musyamon all flying in random directions! The Chosen took a hint and began to clear out of the battlefield, heading for the stands.  
  
"Going somewhere?" asked IceDevimon, landing in front of them. "FROZEN CLAW!!!"  
  
IceDevimon smashed Earnest with one fist, and twirled around, kicking Ace with his left boot! Both of them were flung to the ground.  
  
"Augh!" grunted Ace as he and Earnest crashed onto the cement. "Dragonmon!!! Go to Perfect!!!"  
  
"You too, Leila!"  
  
"Dragonmon Shinka... METALDRAGONMON!!!"  
  
"Leila the Kyubimon Shinka..."  
  
Leila transformed from the regular fox Digimon into a metallic version of herself. Her colors were metallic shades of her usual ones, and she sprouted two wings (much like MetalGarurumon's) from her back.  
  
"... LEILA THE METALKYUBIMON!!!"  
  
MetalDragonmon growled and took to the air, while Leila glanced at IceDevimon, who was still standing over a terrified Arik and Nathan.  
  
"So you like to pick on kids, do you? Well take this! CYBERDRAGON WHEEL!!"  
  
Leila span rapidly in a circle and smashed into IceDevimon, sending him flying into the wall of the coliseum.  
  
"Now, Zephyrmon, take out Ace's pathetic excuse for a Digimon so we can have our revenge on him!" ordered Tori. Zephyrmon nodded and the harpy Digimon took the air, homing in on the much larger MetalDragonmon.  
  
"This time you don't got Shadow Data to pump you up!" growled MetalDragonmon. "AERIAL INFERNO!!!"  
  
MetalDragonmon blasted fire downwards at Zephyrmon, but she flapped her wings and gracefully dodged to the left, still speeding upward at the metal dragon.  
  
"I still got my speed! PHOTON ORBS!!!"  
  
Zephyrmon blasted MetalDragonmon with the two explosive orbs and sent him plummeting backwards through the air. Teferimon ran over to Rievermon and the demon Digimon wondered what Teferimon wanted.  
  
"What is it?" growled Hieshi's partner.  
  
"Hurl me at MetalDragonmon," ordered Teferimon. Rievermon did as told and launched the armored humanoid directly at the metal dragon. Teferimon landed on his arm.  
  
"What is he doing?!" asked Ace, as he and Arik watched on.  
  
"Hope you don't mind if I borrow this!" shouted Teferimon. "DIGITAL CLONE!!!"  
  
"That's the way to win! Use them against themselves!" shouted Jeska, from where she, Tori and Ray were standing at the other end of the coliseum. Hieshi looked at them, keeping his distance.  
  
_Fools..._  
  
Teferimon became a replica of MetalDragonmon, much to his amazement. He used his new metallic body to smash the real one down into the seating area!  
  
"That's insane!" exclaimed Arik. "Racermon, you better evolve again!"  
  
"And you, Musyamon!" shouted Nathan.  
  
"Racermon Shinka... TECHAMON!!!"  
  
"Musyamon Shinka... CHAOSMON!!!"  
  
The green warrior and the demonic cloaked Digimon emerged from where their weaker counterparts were standing before. Rievermon grinned.  
  
"Do it now!" ordered Hieshi.  
  
Rievermon shot forward, snatching Techamon by the head. He lifted the struggling warrior Digimon into the air.  
  
"Techamon!" exclaimed Arik with concern. "Help him!"  
  
Chaosmon turned to help, but Teferimon utilized his new form well and opened the chest plates he now had.  
  
"DRAGON MISSILE!!!" yelled Teferimon, blasting Chaosmon with the two missiles.  
  
"Damn copycat..." growled Ace.  
  
"Here's something you pussies haven't seen before!" shouted Hieshi.  
  
"DARK NEXUS!!!" yelled Rievermon, still holding a helpless Techamon by the head.  
  
All eyes glanced at at Rievermon, who began to feed dark energy into Techamon, slowly transforming his body black and into a virus type Digimon!  
  
"That's not fair!" screamed Arik.  
  
"There are some drawbacks, it won't effect viruses or demons, and also can't be used on a Digimon of higher level than Rievermon, which I'm afraid all you fools are not." Hieshi informed them.  
  
"Is it just me, or is Hieshi a little too powerful?" whispered Ray to Tori and Jeska. The two girls glanced at Ray and then at Hieshi.  
  
"Who cares as long as he's on our side?" replied Tori, brushing off his comment. Jeska wasn't so quick to answer.  
  
"Keep an eye on him..." she said, cautiously. (_I'm not so sure about that bastard either...)_  
  
Sapphiremon glided around MegaOctopimon at the other end of the coliseum. The purple octopus was launching ink into the air, but Perfect level Sapphiremon was too fast for her. After darting around her in circles a bit longer, she swooped in for the attack with her scythe!  
  
"SAPPHIRE SCYTHE!!!"  
  
MegaOctopimon was hit and sent tumbling down on the ground next to where Ali was standing. She gasped with annoyance. Amara pulled herself up off the ground, grimacing at the ink covering her clothes.  
  
"Alison, I can read your mind, and I know you're scared to death of me..."  
  
"I am not! I'm facing you, aren't I?!"  
  
"That's not what I mean... you're scared that I could take Lee away from you..."  
  
Ali simply stared at Amara skeptically. She then began to laugh.  
  
"That's rich, Amara. Me and Lee have known each other since we were four. I scraped my knee and he tore up his shirt to help make me feel better. Since then, he's always been there for me, as you say the other day at the power plant. Lee loves me, and he'll NEVER go for you!"  
  
Amara glared at Ali, extremely vexed by her speech.  
  
"Let's see how he goes for a dead woman! Sapphiremon, get her!!!"  
  
"AQUA REVOLT!!!"  
  
Sapphiremon held out her fist a blasted extreme water pressure into Alison, sending her crashing back against the wall of the coliseum. Sapphiremon then began to walk towards her, still pouring on the water pressure as she walked. Ali gurgled, barely able to breathe under the high water pressure.  
  
_(Octopimon... help me...)_  
  
Her D-Volver began to react to her mental plea, and the fallen MegaOctopimon began to evolve.  
  
"No way!" hissed Amara. "I should've been quicker in killing her!"  
  
"MegaOctopimon Shinka..."  
  
MegaOctopimon only grew slightly bigger, but her hide was vastly reinforced, almost like living armor. Her tentacles became thicker as well, now ready to deliver quite the wallop.  
  
"... ULTRAOCTOPIMON!!!"  
  
Sapphiremon turned to look, and was slammed by one of UltraOctopimon's thick appendages. She rolled through the dirt, and then used her arms to push herself back up.  
  
"Don't think it's finished yet!" shouted Amara.  
  
"Oh I wouldn't dream it..." groaned a soaked Ali, although keeping her confident tone.  
  
The virus-infected Techamon leapt into the air, heading directly for MetalKyubimon! The armored fox dodged to the side as Techamon threw a mighty kick at her, taking a large chunk out of the ground.  
  
"Argh, we're vastly outnumbered now!" growled Earnest. "Five to three!"  
  
"Techamon stop it!!!" screamed Arik, but Techamon wouldn't listen to him.  
  
"Maybe taking out Rievermon will restore him..." suggested Nathan.  
  
"Are you nuts?" exclaimed Ace. "That guy is practically invincible, two fights and we haven't scratched him! Plus, Hieshi told us he gets powered up in darkness!"  
  
"So does Chaosmon," replied Nathan, smirking. Chaosmon overheard this and turned to face Rievermon, launching himself right at the demon Digimon!  
  
"What the--" was all Rievermon got out before being tackled! Chaosmon shifted himself upwards, taking the two of them up into the night sky and out of the main battle.  
  
"Interesting..." gasped Hieshi, watching them go up. "A battle of demons..."  
  
"Now, Teferimon! Slaughter that weak version of yourself!" ordered Jeska, pointing at MetalDragonmon, who was still lain out on the ground.  
  
"Back him up!" shouted Tori to Zephyrmon.   
  
MetalDragonmon's eyes widened as he saw the two Perfects come rushing down at him, and one of them was in his form! He needed a plan, quick!  
  
Suddenly, Sapphiremon was sent flying over his head and crashed right into Zephyrmon! The two female warriors crashed into the ground in a heap. MetalDragonmon glared at Teferimon.  
  
"Eat missile, you fake! DRAGON MISSILE!!!"  
  
Teferimon was flying too fast to stop and was hit at point-blank range by the missiles! He dropped out of the ensuing explosion in his regular humanoid form. UltraOctopimon made her way over to where MetalDragonmon was.  
  
"Are you hurt?" asked UltraOctopimon. "WATER ELIXIR!!!"  
  
A small rain cloud appeared over MetalDragonmon, magically healing his wounds. Jeska, Ray and Tori began to get antsy.  
  
"This is not going how Rathjen said it would..." growled Jeska.  
  
"What did he say would happen if we failed?" asked Tori, the thought slipping her mind.  
  
"That we'd all pay the price... whatever that means..."  
  
"Your timing could not have been better!" shouted Ace to Ali. Ali ran over to rejoin the boys, leaving a pissed Amara behind.  
  
_(I won't let that loser make a fool out of me!)_ thought Amara, angrily.  
  
- - -  
  
"Your death will be at my hand!" growled Rievermon. "DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
Rievermon barreled at Chaosmon, attempting to slash him, but the other darkness Digimon was too fast and floated to the side. He charged fire in his hands.  
  
"CHAOS FLARE!!!"  
  
Rievermon was hit by three fireballs and snarled at the pain! Chaosmon sent another oneat him, but Rievermon kicked it back, hitting Chaosmon in the stomach. He moved his wings fast, so as to capitalize on Chaosmon's moment of weakness.  
  
"DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
He began to slash Chaosmon repeatedly, and the cloaked demon was beginning to bleed at his coat was torn from the repeated hits! He screamed out in agony and forced both of his hands onto Rievermon's waist.  
  
"What!?" gasped Rievermon, stopping slashing to turn his attention to whatever Chaosmon was doing.  
  
"SOUL EATER!!" screamed Chaosmon. He began sucking energy from Rievermon, healing his own wounds in the process. Rievermon hissed and punched Chaosmon in the face to make distance between them, but he could feel fatigue setting in.  
  
_(It looks like Rievermon got alot taken out of him...)_ thought Hieshi, observing their fight. (_My brother's friends are more resourceful than I thought... so there's only one course of action to take now...)_  
  
"Rievermon, execute plan B!"  
  
"What's that!?" asked Jeska. But Hieshi ignored her. Rievermon set down in front of Teferimon, Zephyrmon and Sapphiremon, who were all just getting up from their spills earlier.  
  
"About time you came to help us..." complained Sapphiremon.  
  
Suddenly Rievermon kicked all three of them, sending them smashing down hard on the ground! Everyone's jaws dropped in disbelief.  
  
"Hieshi, what are you doing?!" exclaimed Ray.  
  
Hieshi ran over to Rievermon and the demon Digimon picked him up.  
  
"Ditching you losers. You can consider me no longer a part of your little team! I'll find my own way to Trinity Server! Have fun getting wasted by the Hikari Chosen."  
  
"You can't do this to us!" shouted Amara.  
  
"Funny, I just did."  
  
Rievermon took off into the sky, carrying Hieshi. As soon as he left, Techamon returned to his normal green color and stopped attacking MetalKyubimon.  
  
"Should I follow him, Nathan?" asked Chaosmon, floating down to where the quintet of Hikari Chosen were standing.  
  
"Nah, let him go. We got questions for these four..."  
  
MetalDragonmon, MetalKyubimon, Chaosmon, Techamon and UltraOctopimon formed a circle around the four Yami Chosen.  
  
"Ah, crap," sighed Jeska.  
  
At the scientist's laboratory, Rathjen was just walking into the main control room where Green and Irvine were observing the outcome of the big battle between the Yami and Hikari teams. Rathjen looked around suspiciously.  
  
"Where's Lunn?"  
  
"With Lee Trainer, to keep him away from the fighting, remember?" answered Green. "And your little plan flopped. Hieshi betrayed the others and took off, leaving them helpless."  
  
"I knew that boy was no good," growled Rathjen.  
  
"We'll deal with him later," said Irvine, not even caring. "The Yami Chosen lost, therefore it's time to test out our new weapon..."  
  
"God have mercy on all of them..." gasped Green.  
  
- - -  
  
"Alright, JES-KA!" shouted Ace, making a large mock sound of her name. "Who put you up this!?"  
  
"Like I'd tell you, goof."  
  
"Grr!" growled Ace, messing up his hair. "She's not cooperating! And she called me a goof! I demand justice!"  
  
"Maybe if you'd shut up," said Earnest walking over to him.  
  
Jeska, Ray, Amara and Tori weren't going anywhere thanks to the wall of Perfects surrounding them. All their partners were regaining strength, but not dumb enough to attack when their partners were in a hostage situation.  
  
"One of you is going to tell us what the hell is going on here," said Earnest, crossing his arms. Ali, Arik and Nathan walked up behind him to back the two of them up. "These attacks have got to be for a reason."  
  
"If you must know, our leaders want you guys dead so they can upload themselves into Trinity Server," answered Ray. Tori turned and smacked him.  
  
"Ray! We aren't supposed to tell them that!"  
  
"Oh god... I'm surrounded by idiots..." groaned Jeska, massaging her forehead. Ali glanced at Amara, who was being very quiet and distant, unlike her three companions.  
  
"What's wrong, Amara? Upset you got whipped by me?" asked Ali, grinning.  
  
"No... I... sense something..." replied the psychic girl, very faintly.  
  
"What kind of something?" asked Jeska.  
  
"I sense it too," said Sapphiremon, pulling herself off the ground. "It's the same dark presence we sensed this morning, Amara..."  
  
"They're just trying to trick us," Earnest said to Arik, Ace, Ali and Nathan, who were a little intimidated by what Amara and her partner were saying.  
  
"No, Earnest!" shouted Leila. "I sense it now too!"  
  
"Me too!" added MetalDragonmon, tensing up. "What the hell is that?!"  
  
All the other Digimon began to react in the same way, leaving most of the humans really confused.  
  
"I... IceDevimon?" asked Ray, as his Adult level partner walked through the circle of Hikari Digimon and over to him. The fallen angel Digimon grimaced.  
  
"I know what it is..." gasped IceDevimon.  
  
"Me too..." agreed Chaosmon. Everyone looked at them, expecting an answer.  
  
"How do you two know?" asked Ace, confused.  
  
"We're both demon Digimon, so we know when another demon Digimon is present," answered IceDevimon.  
  
"And this one is the mother trucker of all demon Digimon..." gasped Chaosmon.  
  
A fierce wind blew through the coliseum, shaking up the nine Chosen and Digimon. They saw a shadow, its figure obscured from their vision by the bright spotlight shining right down on where they were standing.  
  
"Who is that...?" wondered Ali, her hair swaying in the unnaturally fierce wind.  
  
"Is it Hieshi? Did he come back?" asked Tori.  
  
"Tammy...?" gasped Amara. "Tammy! I've been looking all over for you!!!"  
  
Amara turned and ran to go see her best friend, and the blonde girl was certainly visible now. She was still wearing her white karate uniform that she had on the other day, and her face was hard to see because her hair was blowing in it... but something seemed unnatural about it.  
  
"Did she say Tammy?" inquired Nathan, curiously. "That's the girl who was at Lee's birthday party the other night. But what's she doing here?"  
  
"Earnest..." warned Leila. "Something bad is about to happen."  
  
Tammy outstretched her arm, punching Amara directly in the face and sending her crashing backwards onto the ground in front of the others. Amara rubbed her throbbing cheek and looked up at Tammy with shock.  
  
"You... what's happened to you?"  
  
"You have all failed," Tammy told them in a very monotone voice. "Designate Amara, you are no longer worthy of being my friend, or even co-existing in the same world as me. Designates Victoria, Ray and Jeska, you are all just as worthless... and must be deleted."  
  
"Designate? What is she, a robot?" asked Arik, getting a little defensive.  
  
"She's pumped full of Shadow data... much MUCH more than we saw in Tori or the others..." growled Earnest.   
  
"How much would that be?" wondered Tori.  
  
"Oh I'd say enough to take away her free will..."  
  
"Crap."  
  
Tammy then turned to the Hikari Chosen, looking at them with lifeless eyes.  
  
"Designates Hikari Chosen, your function in this world is to prevent the destruction of Megabyte Server Barrier, therefore protecting said server from viruses, but also preventing us from leaving. You and your Digimon must also be deleted."  
  
"Yeah, right! You don't look like you got a partner to speak of, zombie girl! But I do!" shouted Ace, pointing to MetalDragonmon, who roared out in an attempt to intimidate her. She simply stood there, not even noticing him.  
  
Suddenly, a lightning bolt came crashing down from the sky behind them! It moved right through the area they were standing, sending them scattering all over the place! It ended up stopping right next to Tammy and began to swirl itself into a form.  
  
"Now what's happening?!" exclaimed Ali.  
  
"Tammy... no..." gasped Amara, with fright.  
  
Earnest, Ali, Arik, Jeska, Tori, Ray, Ace, Nathan, Amara and their partners all looked on as the lightning bolt combined with Shadow data to become a Digimon. It was a pale-skinned virus type Digimon, with two large red claws in place of hands. Large spikes protruded from the back of his vermin-like head and ran down his back. He screamed out, his screech painful to the ears.  
  
"Agh! What the hell is that!?" screamed Ray, covering his ears.  
  
"... ArcaDemon..." gasped Leila. "Now, we have to kill it now! While it's in it's Child form!"  
  
"That's a Child?!" exclaimed Ace. "It must be weak then! Why are you all so scared? MetalDragonmon, blast the crap out of it!"  
  
MetalDragonmon nodded, flapping his metallic wings and raising himself into the air. Tammy and her demonic partner looked up at him.  
  
"Suicide," was all Tammy said. Amara narrowed her eyebrows at Tammy.  
  
_(Why would they do this to her? So we lost one battle! I didn't want Tammy dragged into this...)_  
  
"AERIAL INFERNO!!!" screamed MetalDragonmon, launching a fire stream directly at Tammy and ArcaDemon! ArcaDemon leapt upwards and flew right into MetalDragonmon's attack, deleting it the second he touched it!  
  
"Holy shit!" exclaimed Ace.  
  
"That's impossible for a Child!" screamed Arik.  
  
ArcaDemon elbwoed MetalDragonmon directly in the face, knocking him unconscious instantly! He grabbed MetalDragonmon by his throat and hurled him downwards at the coliseum, causing him to leave a huge crater upon impact! All the Chosen turned and ran, while their Digimon held their ground.  
  
"Did you see what he just DID!?" yelled Ray.  
  
"No, I missed it," groaned Tori, sarcastically.  
  
"CHAOS FLARE!!!" screamed Chaosmon, soaring upwards at ArcaDemon, firing off fireballs repeatedly. Zephyrmon was right there next to him!  
  
"PHOTON ORBS!!!" screamed Zephyrmon, launching the two potent bombs at ArcaDemon! The two attacks hit him at the same time, causing a huge explosion of flame to ensue, lighting up the entire coliseum.  
  
"He's got to be dead now!" shouted Nathan.  
  
"Pathetic," said Tammy, downing Nathan's hopes.  
  
ArcaDemon came flying down out of the explosion, wrapping his arms around Chaosmon and Zephyrmon's necks as he fell! He bashed both of them headfirst into the cement, taking them out of the fight!  
  
"Grrr.... FROZEN CLAW!!!" bellowed IceDevimon, running at him. ArcaDemon held up his forearm, blocking IceDevimon's attack in mid-air. IceDevimon attempted to force his arm in, but ArcaDemon effortlessly held him at bay. He pushed back, smashing IceDevimon in the face and knocking him backwards through the wall of the coliseum! He then turned to the others.  
  
"DUAL BLASTERS!!!" screamed Leila, launching two missiles out of hidden compartments in her shoulders at ArcaDemon.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!" yelled UltraOctopimon, blasting out the hugest stream of ink she could muster at the demon.  
  
Both attacks hit, but like before, had no effect whatsoever. ArcaDemon extended a red energy blade from his right hand.  
  
"Wuzzat do?" asked Nathan in fright.  
  
"ERASE SICKLE!!!" yelled ArcaDemon, finally speaking. He slashed Leila and UltraOctopimon with it, sending them flying away. Sapphiremon had leapt above him and brought her scythe right down on him!  
  
"SAPPHIRE SCYTHE!!!"  
  
The scythe stabbed right into his shoulder and meshed it's way through his bone, coming out of his upper back! Ace and Nathan cheered, while Ali covered her mouth.  
  
"I think I'm going to be sick..." she groaned.  
  
Sapphiremon stood there with the scythe stabbed into ArcaDemon, waiting for him to fall. But he didn't even bleed. He flexed his arm, shattering her scythe!!!  
  
"That's... no, he just can't do that!" protested Tori. "Why is he so invincible?!"  
  
"It's the Shadow data, DUH!" shouted Ace, happy to finally know something before someone else did. "When you had Shadow data in you, you were beating MetalDragonmon around the park like it was nothing! But today, it was a very fair fight, get where I'm coming from?"  
  
"I do," responded Earnest. "The more Shadow data, the more powerful a Digimon is. This one has to be at least ninety percent Shadow data... there is no way we can win..."  
  
"We have to at least try!" protested Arik.  
  
ArcaDemon turned to face Sapphiremon, who backed away from him in fright.  
  
"ERASE SICKLE!!!" he screamed, slashing her and taking her out of the fight. He looked around for his next opponent, and found Teferimon right behind him.  
  
"Now you're mine!" yelled Teferimon, triumphantly. "DIGITAL CLONE!!!"  
  
Teferimon touched him, expecting to transform into him as he did into MetalDragonmon earlier. Instead he got a negative shock of data, and dropped to the ground instantly. Techamon extended his sword and ran at ArcaDemon, ready to give it all he had!  
  
"TECH SABER!!!"  
  
Techamon slashed him repeatedly but his sword swipes were doing little damage, if any. He leapt back, away from the demon Digimon arm charged up his arm lazer.  
  
"VORTEX SPRAY!!!" he screamed, blasting energy right at ArcaDemon. ArcaDemon then spread his arms, unleashing an attack of his own that cancelled out the Vortex Spray!  
  
"SOUL ABSORPTION!!!"  
  
A huge energy bubble appeared around ArcaDemon, sucking out the energy of all the nearby Digimon, including Techamon. He dropped to the ground like the others did.  
  
"They all failed!" exclaimed Arik. "Now we're dead!"  
  
ArcaDemon turned his glare to the nine Chosen, who all cringed as he began to step towards them.  
  
"What do we do now?!" shouted Tori, hysterically.  
  
"Pray..." sighed Nathan.  
  
"Oh yeah, that really works for you, Shadow boy!" shouted Jeska.  
  
"It did when I kicked your ass!" he snapped back.  
  
"Can we not fight in the last five seconds I have to live?" asked Ali.  
  
"Tammy! I know you can hear me!" yelled Amara, standing far in front of the other eight. "Don't hurt us! I'm your friend, remember?!"  
  
ArcaDemon stepped right up to Amara and raised his energy blade into the air over her head. All the other Chosen looked away.  
  
"I can't watch this..." groaned Ali. "She's going to be skewered..."  
  
"Friends..." said Tammy. "ArcaDemon, new mission. Render all life forms inert. Do not kill them."  
  
ArcaDemon responded and began to glow with energy again.  
  
"SOUL ABSORPTION!!!"  
  
Amara was hit first, falling unconscious immediately as her energy was sucked out. Ace, Ali, Tori, Jeska, Ray, Earnest, Arik and Nathan were hit soon after, crumpling to the ground. Tammy and ArcaDemon stood over them. Tammy knew full well that she could kill them all right now... but what little sanity she had left was stopping her.  
  
"Bring designates Yami Chosen back to the base for judgment. Leave designates Hikari Chosen here for now. Orders were to test power strengths, not to kill. Power level extremely high due to Shadow Data, as data dissipates, you will get weaker. Your strength will still remain above average, though."  
  
ArcaDemon set about collecting the four Yami Chosen, and Tammy looked at her own Yami D-Volver.  
  
"What stopped me from fulfilling the mission? ... doesn't matter. Let us go."  
  
Amara groaned and opened her eyes. She felt metal on the back of her head and noticed she was back in the scientists' base. She looked around to see Tori, Jeska and Ray just coming to as well.  
  
"I feel like I got twenty hangovers..." groaned Jeska, rubbing her head. "Are we alive?"  
  
"Tammy spared us," answered Amara.  
  
"For what good it will do you," said the familiar voice of Matt Irvine, entering the room. "Your lack of teamwork skills sickens me. The Hikari Chosen function as one unit, not as four little individuals who want to get revenge on a certain person. You're lucky Tammy still had some compassion left in her for weaklings like you."  
  
"How is that ArcaDemon so strong?" asked Tori. "It mopped the floor with all of us!"  
  
"A defect in it's programming allowed us to fill it with 95% Shadow data. That's not a number you want to mess with, my dears. ArcaDemon does have a weakness, but none of you figured it out," he told them. "Now, onto more pressing matters. What to do with you four."  
  
"Please don't take DemiDevimon away fro me!" pleaded Ray.  
  
"Yeah, we'll get stronger!" protested Jeska.  
  
"I'd say you four can keep your partners... if you can deal with Hieshi for me," offered Irvine. "We need the Shadow data that is in his D-Volver, for our resources are running low."  
  
"What is your 'resource'?" asked Jeska, curiously.  
  
"That is our little secret," said Irvine. "Now I have just the plan to take out Hieshi, but it will involve all four of you working together. But most importantly..."  
  
Irvine pointed past Jeska and Ray, to where Amara was sitting quietly.  
  
"... it involves you, Amara."  
  
"Me?"  
  
"Crystalmon taught you how to project dreams... correct?" inquired Irvine.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Then all is in motion. Jeska, Ray, Tori, you three must go collect someone... someone you all know very well..." began Irvine.  
  
"Why not have Tammy do it?" asked Ray. "She's tougher--"  
  
Jeska clamped her hand over Ray's mouth.  
  
"If we don't prove our worth by doing this, they'll be making Tammy do everything, with us dead!" she hissed. She then smiled and looked at Irvine. "Who do we need to collect?"  
  
"Lee Trainer," answered Irvine. Jeska, Ray, Tori and Amara all stared at him, wondering just how this plot was going to come together...


	15. Psychic Twister, Pt 1

Lee, Ali and James were walking down a street in Tamur the next morning, and Ali was relaying every single detail of the previous night to the two boys who missed out. Lee and James were appropriately shocked by her story.  
  
"Oh my god... were you hurt?" asked Lee, putting his arm around her and holding her close to him as they walked. She slowly shook her head.  
  
"Just... tired. ArcaDemon used to soul absorbing attack on all of us..." she sighed, flustered.  
  
"I can't believe Tammy is a Yami Chosen now..." said Lee. "She was such a sweet person... she didn't deserve to get dragged into this."  
  
"Did any of them?" countered Alison. "They're using people around us to hurt us..."  
  
James put his finger to his chin.  
  
"It leads reason to wonder, if Dean Rathjen invited you all up there... where does his allegiance lay?" asked James. Ali glanced at him.  
  
"You can't be accusing him of setting that up! I like him! He got me into the radio club at school!"  
  
"I'm just saying nothing has been as it seemed lately... every scenario is a possible one," replied James.  
  
"James is right," agreed Lee. "Rathjen must be the one behind all of this Yami Chosen stuff."  
  
"Hey guys!" shouted a familiar voice from ahead of them. They looked up to see Earnest standing there, waving at them. They walked over to their spiritual friend to see what he wanted.  
  
"Earnest, are you feeling better after last night now?" asked Ali, who was still relying on Lee's support to stand up. Earnest nodded.  
  
"You can't keep me down long," the pony tailed boy said, confidently. "Now I wanna show you guys something, come with me."  
  
Earnest turned and headed into the alley off the side of the road they were walking on. Lee, Ali and James followed.  
  
"What exactly is something?" asked Lee.  
  
"It's right around this corner..." answered Earnest, still ahead of them. Ali and Lee turned the corner first to see...  
  
"FROZEN CLAW!!!" screamed IceDevimon, smashing Lee and Ali with his arm, sending them crashing back onto the ground, unconscious.  
  
"What the hell is this?!" exclaimed James, reaching for his D-Volver.  
  
"HURRICANE GALE!!!" yelled Kazemon, who was standing next to him. James was flung into the air and slammed into a building in the alleyway. He collapsed to the ground.  
  
Earnest's molecules shifted until he was back into his original form of Magemon. Jeska, Ray and Tori, all holding their Yami D-Volvers, came strolling over to join their partners. They looked down at the three Hikari Chosen.  
  
"Well that was easy," said Tori triumphantly, putting her hands on her hips.  
  
"Our job is done," Jeska told them. "Now it's up to Amara..."  
  
Beep beep beep.  
  
"Ugh..." groaned Lee, reaching over and slamming his fist down on his alarm clock repeatedly. He wanted some much-needed pillow time.  
  
"Lee, get up," said Nathan, poking his head into Lee's room.  
  
"What the...?" he groaned. "How did I get here? The thing I remember was IceDevimon and..."  
  
"You must've been dreaming!" Nathan shouted at him, uninterested. "People dream. Now get dressed, there's a snowstorm today so we'll have to walk to school!"  
  
"Right..." he groaned, falling out of his bed. "I guess it was a dream..."  
  
The blonde haired boy proceeded to put his clothes on and run downstairs, to where Ace, James and Nathan were waiting for him. They all looked pretty nervous.  
  
"What are you doing here, James?" inquired Lee, grabbing some food.  
  
"I was too lazy to head back to RTC last night after my court meeting, so I just crashed here on the couch."  
  
"Fine by me, but why do you three look so nervous?" he asked, shoving half of a strawberry Pop Tart in his mouth.  
  
"Have you looked outside?" responded Nathan. Lee glanced out the window to see the fiercest snowstorm Tamur has had yet this winter season. He gasped as he noticed he could barely see three feet in front of the window due to the barrage of frozen water being hurled from the heavens.  
  
"That's... unnatural," gasped Lee. "Last thing I remember it was perfectly clear. I guess it's not safe to drive, huh?"  
  
"If it was, we would've stolen your car while you were sleeping," replied the black eyed boy, taking some pop-tarts for himself. Lee grumbled.  
  
"I have to brave it... I promised Ali I'd go with her to the hospital today..."  
  
"I'll come with you to RTC," said James, zipping up his leather jacket. "I live there anyway."  
  
Lee threw on some heavy-duty clothing of his own and the two of them left the house together, entering the fierce blizzard. There wasn't going to be any traffic in this weather, so they walked in the middle of the street, trying to figure out which way they were supposed to go.  
  
_(Wait...)_ began Lee, thinking to himself. (_Last thing I remember... I WAS going to the hospital with Ali and James! Maybe I dreamt it...?)_  
  
"Hey James..." began Lee, attempting to look at his friend, who was trying to shield himself from the snow. "Did we go walking anywhere this morning?"  
  
"No..." replied James in a suspicious tone. "Are you on drugs?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Then we're on the same page, buddy," he replied. "Keep walking, I think this is Front Street. Or maybe it's Park Avenue. It's something."  
  
_(Then what the heck am I thinking about? Am I insane?)_  
  
_(The answer to the question is yes,)_ projected a female voice into his head. Amara was somewhere nearby and she was reading his thoughts.  
  
"Amara..." gasped Lee, glanced around, but he was unable to see her or anything else in the blizzard. He noticed James was gone. "James?!"  
  
"He's over here, Trainer," replied a familiar voice to his call. It was Hieshi. "My brother and I are just doing some bonding."  
  
_(What? Amara AND Hieshi? How did they know where we are? This is... unrealistic.)_  
  
"Yeah right!" he heard James yell back. "Keramon, evolve and let's take him!"  
  
Lee went to run in the direction of the voice, but he was tackled from behind and slammed into the snow! He saw dark brown hair drape down into his view and knew it was Amara. He grabbed her by the arms and hurled her overhead off of him. He saw her slam down back-first on the street in front of him.  
  
_(Amara and Hieshi working together?)_ thought Lee. (_Ali was just telling me that Hieshi betrayed them... but I never talked to Ali, I dreamt that... I... this just isn't adding up!)_  
  
"What's going on here, Amara?" asked Lee, completely out of touch with reality at the moment.  
  
"Guess," was all she replied. She stood up and pulled out her Yami D-Volver, outstretching it into the air by an arm attached to a white turtleneck sweater that accentuated her breasts. She was either going for hot or weatherproof, Lee wasn't sure which. She looked at him with her brown eyes and fixated them into a glare. Then she paused.  
  
"Well...?" asked Lee, holding out his Hikari D-Volver, waiting for her to make the first move.  
  
"Looks like my distraction is over," she said, turning and running back into the depths of the blizzard. Lee looked at her as she ran off, confused.  
  
"Distraction...? Oh no-- James!!"  
  
Lee turned to see the big black demonic form of Rievermon come into view, and a battered Kurisarimon was flung to the ground. The virus Digimon didn't look too good. Lee glanced over at Hieshi and James.  
  
The two black haired brothers were squaring off, but Hieshi was holding a katana in his left hand, pointing the blade threateningly at James. James backed away from him in fear.  
  
"Argh, Kokuwamon!!!" screamed Lee in desperation, summoning him from the Hikari D-Volver. But he and the robotic beetle weren't fast enough at all. Hieshi thrusted the weapon at his brother, but James was quick enough to sidestep it... so it didn't pierce his heart, anyway.  
  
James was stabbed right in the arm and screamed louder than Lee had ever heard anyone scream. Hieshi laughed evilly and left the katana suspended in his brother's arm, then turned and ran away just like Amara. Lee and Kokuwamon glanced at Rievermon, who simply flew up and away. They ran over to the screaming James.  
  
The blade end of the katana was coming out of the other end of his left arm, blood smeared on it. He dropped to his knees and began to curse and cry. Lee gently pulled the katana from James' arm and tossed it aside. He knelt down to comfort his fallen friend as blood gushed from his arm, turning the white snow into red.  
  
"HELP!!!" screamed Lee. "SOMEBODY HELP!!!"  
  
"Lee... it hurts..."  
  
"Hang in there, James... it's going to be okay..." he promised James, hugging him. "SOMEONE HELP DAMMIT!!!"  
  
Somewhere, we see a close up of Amara's face as her eyes are clenched tightly shut. She blinks quickly and then opens them.  
  
"Enough?" asked Amara, her face covered in darkness. She appeared to be concentrating very hard on something.  
  
"More. Even more," replied Irvine's voice. Amara nodded, understanding and shut her eyes again.  
  
Later that day, the blizzard had subsided, leaving a huge blanket of snow in its' wake. Lee was sitting on Ali's bed in her dorm room, looking shamefully at the ground. Ali paced back and forth in her room, the brunette not knowing what to say to Lee about the events of earlier. She glanced at her ring that Lee bought her for a minute and then finally came up with something.  
  
"It wasn't your fault," she told him, although she knew this would set him off. She knew him far too well. But she also knew that getting him to vent his anger would get him talking again at least.  
  
"What do you mean it wasn't my fault?! If I wasn't so distracted by Amara, I would've been able to help him against that psycho!"  
  
"So it's Amara's fault then."  
  
"Argh, maybe you're right... but why are Hieshi and Amara working together?" asked Lee, still confused. "You told me Hieshi betrayed them."  
  
"I never said that," responded Ali, looking at him like he was crazy.  
  
"What?" gasped Lee. "Err... right. Of course you didn't. Oh man am I lost..."  
  
Ali applied some red lipstick quickly and threw on a coat. She grabbed him by the arm and pulled him off the bed.  
  
"Come on, we gotta go to the hospital for the checkup on my pregnancy," she told him. "We can see how James is doing. That'll make you feel better."  
  
"Maybe..."  
  
Ali led him out of the dorm room and locked the door behind her. She wrapped herself around his arm and they moved for the stairs, walking down them. Little did they know that Jeska, Ray and Tori were watching them...  
  
"Perfect," said Jeska, grinning widely.  
  
The snow had settled finally, but the ground was still blanketed in the frozen liquid about four feet up. The roads weren't as bad and thankfully no one was driving, so Lee and Ali walked along that. Lee's mind was still locked on the horrifying events of earlier.  
  
Ali looked and him and sighed, "you wanna bitch some more?"  
  
"Not really. But I just don't get it..."  
  
"Don't get what?" she wondered.  
  
"Hieshi is normally brutal, so I can see why he'd try and kill James... he hates James. but why would he just stab him in the arm and leave him there? Rievermon could've taken Kokuwamon and I easily, but instead he just flew away..."  
  
"Maybe Hieshi wants him to suffer?" suggested Ali.  
  
"I thought that, but I think Hieshi really wants me to suffer... knowing I was useless to help my friend..." sighed Lee, looking mournfully down at the snow covered ground. "Remember two years ago when James suicide attacked Desiree, and I was standing RIGHT THERE?"  
  
"Yes..."  
  
"I got that feeling again earlier! That I was helpless to help someone I cared about! You remember when Desiree hurled you off the cliff..."  
  
"I'm lucky there was a server reboot..." sighed Ali.  
  
"There might not be next time. We have to be REALLY careful," Lee reminded her.  
  
"But Lee, careful is boring!" shouted a voice from behind them. "Why not rumble with us and have some REAL fun?"  
  
Lee and Ali turned around to see Jeska was the speaker, but Tori was with her as well. The two Yami Chosen were grinning as Teferimon and Zephyrmon walked up to join them. The two Perfect level Digimon stood behind their partners, looking fairly imposing.  
  
"Jeska, are you nuts? In broad daylight and the middle of the street?!" exclaimed Lee. Jeska and Tori didn't seem to care at all.  
  
"Zephyrmon, wipe the street with them," ordered Tori. The harpy in pink began to walk towards Ali and Lee. Lee growled and released Kokuwamon, while Ali did the same for Octopimon.  
  
"Lee, another fight?" asked Kokuwamon. "You should really stay out of trouble!"  
  
"They're stalking me, I swear," replied Lee. He nodded at Kokuwamon, who nodded in response.  
  
"Kokuwamon Shinka... TECKUWAGAMON!!!"  
  
"I'm ready to fight for you, Ali!" shouted Octopimon.  
  
"That's what I like to hear!" she replied, making a fist at the two girls.  
  
"Octopimon Shinka... MEGAOCTOPIMON!!!"  
  
"MegaOctopimon Shinka... ULTRAOCTOPIMON!!!"  
  
The Perfect octopus and Adult insect were more than ready to take on their opponents. Zephyrmon spread her wings and leapt into the air. TecKuwagamon did the same.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!" screamed UltraOctopimon, blasting a stream of electrical ink directly at Jeska and Tori! Teferimon stepped in the way, the armored Digimon holding out his hand.  
  
"PROTECTION SHIELD!!!"   
  
The ink attack was reflected away harmlessly by the shield and shot into the side of a building, causing a large chunk of it to fall off and crash onto the street. Lee was sure that would attract attention, but still no bystanders appeared.  
  
_(How... strange...)_ he thought.  
  
"MOLTEN FLARE!!!" yelled Tecky, blasting flame out of his arm cannon at Zephyrmon. She gracefully rounded the blast in her flight and came up to Tecky's head.  
  
"PHOTON ORBS!!!" she screamed, blasting him at point-blank range. A huge explosion filled the air, and Tecky was sent flying backwards into the street! What Zephyrmon didn't account for was that she was hit by the blast too, and sent careening upwards, landing on top of a nearby building.  
  
"One down!" shouted Tori.  
  
"What are you talking about?!" exclaimed Lee, like she was retarded. "That's one down for you too!"  
  
"These don't seem like our regular opponents," growled Ali. "They're acting too... stupid!"  
  
"Hey! I heard that!" growled their red-headed adversary. "Teferimon, prepare to--"  
  
"Delay that order, Teferimon," growled a voice from above.  
  
Zephyrmon came crashing down from the top of the building, creating a rather large dent in the cement where she landed. Lee, Ali, UltraOctopimon, Jeska, Tori and Teferimon all glanced up to see Hieshi and Rievermon standing atop the building.  
  
_(There he is again!)_ thought Lee. angrily. (_What is with him all of a sudden?! None of the Yami Chosen are acting normal!!!)_  
  
"I'm afraid I'll have to cut your confrontation short," he said, smugly. "Rievermon, get rid of the fodder."  
  
Rievermon nodded and spread his demonic wings, and with a howl he came gliding down from the top of the building, heading directly for Teferimon! Teferimon assumed a defensive pose, but what was he going to do against a demon of that magnitude?  
  
"PROTECTION SHIELD!!!" he yelled, hoping to shield himself.  
  
"Hmph, you think THAT will stop me?!" screamed Rievermon, nearly bursting into laughter. "DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
Rievermon slashed his way through the barrier with ease, shattering it. Jeska and Tori gasped as Rievermon came down on Teferimon and began slashing him repeatedly. When Rievermon was satisfied with the amount on blood on his hands, he booted Teferimon in the head, sending him smashing right through a stop sign and sprawling out on the sidewalk.  
  
"Get out of here before I kill you," growled Rievermon at Tori and Jeska. The two of them turned and bolted the other way down the street. Hieshi smirked and jumped on the fire escape of the building he was on, sliding down it until he could jump to street level.  
  
"Some smooth moves there, Hieshi," said Lee, getting defensive. TecKuwagamon was still unconscious and he wasn't sure if UltraOctopimon could hold her own against a psycho like Rievermon.  
  
"Why don't you leave us alone?!" yelled Ali at him. He smiled and lifted up his pant leg, drawing another katana from it.  
  
"Where's the fun in that? I'm enjoying killing," replied Hieshi.  
  
Ali backed away from him in fear, while Lee looked over the beaten Zephyrmon and Teferimon. If Rievermon could take them out that easily, they were in trouble!  
  
UltraOctopimon turned and blasted Hieshi with an Ink Shock, sending him crashing into the back of a building! Rievermon took to the air and began soaring towards them.  
  
"INK SHOCK!!!" she screamed, blasting Rievermon right in the face! Rievermon was forced to land and was pressed backwards a bit, not as powerful as usual, since it wasn't night out.  
  
"Yeah, get him!" encouraged Ali, becoming a bit less afraid of the situation.  
  
Rievermon growled and leapt into the air again, avoiding her blast! He landed on the ground right next to the purple octopus, sending her flying! He leapt after her to fight some more. Lee and Ali were... alone.  
  
"Got ya!" shouted Hieshi. Lee snapped into awareness and saw Hieshi had grabbed Ali with his free arm! She struggled to make him let go, but he held the katana to her throat and she stopped struggling. She just stared at the blade, in shock of what might happen.  
  
"Hieshi... don't you dare!" screamed Lee, running at him. Hieshi kicked Lee in the stomach once, knocking the wind out of him. He kicked him again after, knocking him into the snow. Lee groaned and looked up at Hieshi, holding the woman he loves three centimeters away from a blade.  
  
"Lee, now comes the decision..." began Hieshi, enjoying Lee's suffering. "I can either kill you... or her."  
  
"You already hurt James, isn't that enough?! He's your brother, for Christ's sake!"  
  
"James? That's it?" asked Hieshi, knowing something Lee didn't. "As far as I recall, after that, I went to your house and beat the hell out of Ace and Nathan. Then I did the same to Earnest and Arik at RTC, before coming here to finish my collection with you two. They're all in the hospital, I doubt they'll all make it."  
  
Lee's eyes widened with shock.  
  
"Wh-what...?"  
  
"I think I might just go blow up the hospital, how does that sound, Lee?"  
  
"NO!!!"  
  
"How about I kill Amara and the other Yami Chosen too? Then I'll leave you as the only one left... to live alone and _suffer_."  
  
"Don't kill my friends! Don't kill Amara! Please don't kill Ali... take me instead!" sighed Lee, dropping to his knees and surrendering himself to Hieshi.'  
  
"Lee..." sighed Ali, completely moved by his actions.  
  
"You choose yourself over her?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Well... TOO BAD!!!" screamed Hieshi, driving the katana into Ali's throat. Lee froze. At that minute... that second... his life was over. This was the exact same thing that happened two years ago.  
  
Hieshi dropped Ali's body to the ground and it collapsed like a puppet that had no strings. Hieshi looked at his katana, amused.  
  
"How do you like that? Do you want to lick the blood off or should I? Guess it doesn't matter, catch ya later!"  
  
Hieshi turned and dashed down the street, heading in the direction Lee knew to be the hospital. Lee simply sat there, frozen and staring at Ali.  
  
"She was... my..." he gasped, choking up. "She had my child..."  
  
Lee's eyes fixated into a glare as he watched Hieshi run off. He stood up, completely furious. And with nothing to lose, either.  
  
"YOU'RE NOT GOING TO GET AWAY WITH THIS, YOU BASTARD!!! YOU HEAR ME?!" screamed Lee. "TecKuwagamon, after him! I want to beat him senseless myself!!!"  
  
Tecky got up and Lee climbed onto his back. The metallic bug then began to take off after Hieshi, who was running fairly fast. Lee was catching up, ready to kill him, when suddenly...  
  
"FROZEN CLAW!!!"  
  
IceDevimon shot out of an alleyway and bashed Tecky across the head with his claw sending him crashing across the street! Lee was flung off and landed hard on the sidewalk.  
  
"Lee, don't bother chasing Hieshi!" shouted Ray. "Fight me instead!"  
  
"Get out of my way, Ray!" snarled Lee, attempting to get up.  
  
"MOLTEN FLARE!!!" yelled TecKuwagamon, burning IceDevimon with the attack. IceDevimon screamed, horribly weak to that element. He collapsed to the ground in a heap. Lee got up and turned to run in the direction Hieshi was going. He saw Ray standing in the direction he was heading.  
  
"What's the matter Lee?" asked Ray. "Can't do anything right without your woman?"  
  
"Shut up!!!" snapped Lee, punching Ray in the face and knocking him out as he ran by. Lee stopped running as he noticed Hieshi... was gone.  
  
"No! He got away!"  
  
He glanced down at Ray, who was groaning and laying on his back on the sidewalk.  
  
"And it's all because of YOU!!!" screamed Lee, beginning to kick Ray repeatedly. He picked him up by his shirt and threw him against a wall.  
  
"Lee, stop!" yelled TecKuwagamon. Lee froze as he noticed he was probably about two seconds away from killing Ray. He began to cry, knowing Ray wasn't the culprit, but mostly because his anger had subsided and he realized he just lost Alison forever... again.  
  
A few days later, Lee was at a cemetery that was located on a cliff overlooking Tamur. He stared down at a headstone that read Ali's name on it. He hadn't slept since Hieshi struck her down. James and the others in the hospital weren't doing so well either.  
  
He dropped a few roses onto her grave and sighed. He thought back to when he first met her when they were little and helped her when she was hurt. He thought back to when he went out with Alex just to make her jealous, but then it ended up with Desiree ending her life. Then he thought back to the night he found out she was pregnant, and figured they'd be spending the rest of their life together...  
  
"What a moron I am... nothing ever works for me... anyone and everyone in my life ends up getting hurt... because of me."  
  
Lee gave one last look at Ali's grave and turned away from it. He began to walk away through the snow, when he heard a voice.  
  
"Horrible chain of events, isn't it?" asked a male voice, obviously older than Lee. Lee didn't even bother to respond or turn around to see who was talking.  
  
"How does it feel to have lost your true love? And Hieshi... just running away... laughing."  
  
Lee turned around to look at who was speaking to him. A man with stylish brown hair standing next to Ali's grave in a trenchcoat looked back at him.  
  
"Who are you?" asked Lee.  
  
"My name is Matt Irvine, and I'm offering you something..."  
  
"What?" asked Lee.  
  
"If you had the chance to get revenge on Hieshi, what would you do?"  
  
"If I had the chance... I'd tear him apart with my bare hands," growled Lee, clenching both of his hands into fists. Irvine grinned, almost evilly.  
  
"Then you get your chance..."  
  
Irvine held out his hand, and Lee's D-Volver began to glow, becoming black instead of white. He now had a Yami D-Volver. He didn't even care, he just knew this would make him able to kill Hieshi once and for all.  
  
"Ungh... kill Hieshi..." groaned Lee, laying on a cold, metal floor with his eyes closed. Amara was kneeling above him, pressing both her hands onto his head. Lee tossed and turned violently, but Ray and Lunn pushed his arms onto the ground, stopping him from moving.  
  
Amara exhaled and released her hands from Lee's head. She looked up at Irvine, who was watching with Tori and Jeska from behind her.  
  
"I'm done creating the vision," said Amara. "He thinks it's all real."  
  
"It won't be long before he wakes up," added Lunn. "Irvine, take the boy up to the top of the warehouse."  
  
Lunn picked up the unconscious Lee and placed him in Irvine's arms. Irvine looked at Lee's new Yami D-Volver and grinned as he stepped into the circular elevator and went up. Amara sighed.  
  
"What is it, Amara?" asked Ray.  
  
"I'm just... tired from creating Lee's vision, is all..." she lied. (_Lee, I'm so sorry. I pray you survive fighting Hieshi...)_  
  
"So Trainer thinks she's dead," said Lunn. "If that means we have to really kill her..."  
  
Lunn looked at a video screen showing Ali tied up in a holding cell, with Green standing over her, acting as a guard.  
  
"... then no problem."  
  
_(If that's what I really want...? Then why do I feel... sorry for Alison...?)_ thought Amara, confusing herself. She then began to project her thoughts to Ray. (_Ray. Come with me...)_  
  
Atop the warehouse, Irvine dumped Lee onto the ground and stood over him as he came too. It was night out, and the perfect time for Lee to kill Hieshi.  
  
"Hieshi is at Willington Manor... avenge your love," Irvine told him.  
  
Lee got up and began walking slowly down the street. Then he began to walk faster, eventually breaking into a run. He pulled out his Yami D-Volver and released Kokuwamon, evolving him to TecKuwagamon and then to his Perfect form of Gigadramon!  
  
Lee hopped atop the grey dragon as he soared through the streets, his metal wings slashing up buildings as he went, and gathering the attention of dozens of people.  
  
"What's that, mommy?"  
  
"Look! It's a dragon! A real live dragon!"  
  
"Oh my god! A monster!!!"  
  
The voices were silent to Lee though. He only had one thing on his mind... Hieshi was going to pay!


	16. Psychic Twister, Pt 2

"Hurry up, Ray!"  
  
Ray followed Amara into the lower passages of the scientists' metal underground fortress. Amara ran her hand along the smooth wall as she made her way down the stairs, while Ray was suitably frightened, following her. The brown-haired boy gulped and straightened his black t-shirt.  
  
"Uhm, Amara... are you sure we're allowed down here?"  
  
"Nope."  
  
_(Great... she's going to get us both killed.)_  
  
_(I am not, just quit shaking or you're going to fall,)_ she told him. Ray shook his head, annoyed at the fact she could read his thoughts.  
  
"Well why do you want to help Alison anyway? Don't you hate her?"  
  
"I do, but... even I don't think she deserves to be caught up in this," answered Amara, sighing. "Do you feel alot less sadistic lately?"  
  
"Like I don't want to kill anymore? Yes," he replied. "I thought I was the only one."  
  
"Nope, me too. I think the Shadow's influence is leaving us..." Amara assumed. "I think we still get to keep our partners though, since we did our job pitting Lee and Hieshi against each other..."  
  
"I wonder who will win that."  
  
"I pray it's Lee..." sighed Amara. "I keep thinking I did the wrong thing by messing with his head... Hieshi is stronger, but Lee has Shadow Data..."  
  
- - -  
  
"Hieshi," growled Lee. He stood on Gigadramon's back, balancing himself as the grey dragon soared through Tamur, attracting all sorts of unwanted attention. Lee didn't care, though, as far as he knew... Alison was killed by Hieshi, and he was going to avenge her if it meant his life.  
  
"We're nearing Willington Manor," Gigadramon told him, also affected by the Shadow Data in Lee. Irvine took advantage of Lee's weakness and transformed his D-Volver into a Yami one. The two were just as sadistic as their foes would be.  
  
"Drop me off in front and soar to the sky, I'll signal you," commanded Lee. Gigadramon flew near the gate of Willington Manor and soared upwards into the air. Lee was left on the street in his wake. He walked up to the guard booth.  
  
"Ah, hello Lee," said Enrique, recognizing him. "Master James isn't in at the moment."  
  
_(Of course he's not, he's in the hospital,)_ thought Lee. "I'm here to see Hieshi."  
  
The Spanish guard eyed Lee curiously. No one ever came to see Hieshi. Ever. But since he was Master James's brother, it was possible for Lee to know him.  
  
"You can go in, Lee," Enrique told him, and Lee entered the manor grounds.  
  
Upstairs in Willington Manor, Hieshi was just finishing dinner with his parents. He grimaced at wearing a suit, but around his parents it was a must. He picked up his empty plate and went to take it into the kitchen.  
  
"So Hieshi, you're going to be enrolling in school for the next semester, right?" asked his dad, still picking at some pork chops on his plate.  
  
"Whatever pleases you, father," he answered, drolly. He didn't care for school, but he didn't care for sitting around on his ass either. Once he got to Trinity Server, he wouldn't have to listen to his father anymore.  
  
"Good, you'll have to do it yourself though, because James and I have another court meeting tonight..."  
  
Hieshi tuned his father out as he dumped his dishes in the sink and headed down the hall for his bedroom. It had been an interesting week. He opened the door to his dark room and pulled Levelermon from his pocket.  
  
"Ah, time to go out, eh Levelermon?" asked Hieshi.  
  
"Hieshi... do I sense... Shadow Data?"  
  
"What?!" exclaimed Hieshi, surprised by his partner's comment. Suddenly he felt someone grab him by the collar of his tux.  
  
"Hello Hieshi," growled Lee. Lee turned and hurled Hieshi right through his 3 meter tall window! Hieshi screamed and figured this was it for him, but luckily he landed on a lower outstretch of roof attached to the manor. He glanced over the edge at the long drop down to the courtyard.  
  
"Holy shit..." gasped Hieshi. He was bleeding a bit from the glass on his arms and back, but he didn't care. He was more concerned with Lee's sudden attack on him.  
  
"I'm not finished with you!" Hieshi heard a voice scream from above.  
  
_(What the hell is Trainer doing? Has he gone completely insane, challenging me in my element?! Whatever the reason, this should prove interesting...)_  
  
Hieshi dropped Levelermon off the roof behind him and held out his Yami D-Volver to evolve him.  
  
"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!!"  
  
Hieshi slid backwards off the roof and landed on the black metallic dragon's head. He stood up and crossed his arms, looking at Lee, who was still standing in his window.  
  
"Lee! I don't know why you're attacking me, but allow me to assist your suicide!" shouted Hieshi. "Dyactoralmon, burn him!"  
  
"Hieshi, wait! If we fight here, your father will know about us!" cautioned Dyactoralmon. Hieshi snorted.  
  
"Who cares, just--"  
  
"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!" screamed a voice from above. Hieshi and Dyactoralmon barely had time to look up before a rather large missile collided with the terra firma in front of them, sending them crashing backwards through the courtyard! Hieshi was flung off of Dyactoralmon and landed in a hedge maze.  
  
"What the hell was that?!" Lee heard Hieshi's father scream. He grinned and leapt out of the window, landing on Gigadramon as he swooped by. Gigadramon hovered in the air above Hieshi and Dyactoralmon.  
  
"No Hieshi, it will be your final hour! I have the power to back me up!"   
  
Hieshi squinted, glanced up at Lee and his Perfect partner. He gasped.  
  
"Is that a Yami D-Volver?" he asked, almost amused. "I'm amazed you're man enough to tamper with such power. Tell me, what's driven you to do this?"  
  
"Shut up and die!" screamed Lee, thrusting his arm at Hieshi. Gigadramon responded almost automatically, loading another missile and firing it from the cannon in his palm.  
  
"Dyactoralmon Shinka... RIEVERMON!!!"  
  
Rievermon leapt in the way of the missile and took the hit for Hieshi! He was flung down into the ground, taking out a healthy few inches of dirt as he slid.  
  
"Good lord! The Shadow data is powering him up more than I expected!" gasped Hieshi.  
  
Hieshi's father, Enrique and a few guards were near the perimeter now, but what were they supposed to do against a dragon like that?! They had no choice but to sit there and watch.  
  
"Hieshi! Son, get out of there!" screamed his father.  
  
"Ungh! No! I fight my battles!" replied Hieshi. "Along with my Digimon partner, Rievermon!"  
  
"Digimon partner...?"  
  
"Go, Rievermon! Rip Lee and his pathetic Digimon to shreds!" commanded Hieshi.  
  
"My pleasure! DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
Rievermon flung himself at Gigadramon and began slashing the dragon in the chest. Lee slid down off of his tail and ran at Hieshi.  
  
"This time you won't get away!" screamed Lee.  
  
"What do you mean this time?" asked Hieshi, confused. "Have you gone completely mad?!"  
  
Lee threw a punch at Hieshi, who blocked it easily. Lee looked like he was going to cry and Hieshi really wondered what was wrong with him.  
  
_(The Shadow data is amplifying his emotions, but why are they directed at me?!)_  
  
"I loved her! And you just took her away!" screamed Lee. "But I guess you don't know what love is, you bastard! All you'll understand is pain!"  
  
Lee kicked Hieshi's feet out, taking him off guard and knocking him backwards. Lee grabbed his tux in mid-fall and pulled him upwards to he could punch him in the face and send him crashing to the ground hard. Hieshi groaned and rubbed his face, then rolled aside as Lee attempted to stomp on his head.  
  
"I didn't hurt anyone!"  
  
"I SAW YOU! You aren't going to get out of this!" screamed Lee as Hieshi leapt back to his feet, still woozy from Lee's punch.  
  
"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!" yelled Gigadramon. Rievermon kicked the missile away and it flew into the air, followed by a huge explosion. All the bystanders gasped in fear as the two Perfects began to collide in the air again.  
  
"DARK NEXUS!!!" screamed Rievermon, attempting to take over Gigadramon's mind like he did to Techamon. Gigadramon simply smashed him with his fist and sent him crashing through a wall of Willington Manor!  
  
"He's a virus type... so it didn't work..." growled Hieshi. "But it's night time, meaning Rievermon is still stronger!"  
  
Rievermon shot back out again and kicked Gigadramon right in the head! Gigadramon gurgled in pain and collapsed backwards onto the ground. Rievermon was breathing heavily, but he had succeeded in taking out his foe.  
  
"No one stops me! Ever!" shouted Hieshi, triumphantly. "I've never lost a fight yet!"  
  
"You will lose! And I will avenge Alison! Gigadramon, EVOLVE TO ULTIMATE!!!" screamed Lee, thrusting his new D-Volver at his fallen partner. "I command you! The Shadow commands you!"  
  
"Look at what you're saying! Everything you're set against! Even I don't go against my morals!" protested Hieshi. "You say I'm a creep!"  
  
Lee ignored him, under the full influence of the Shadow presently. Dark lightning began to burst out of his D-Volver and shot into Gigadramon! Rievermon's eyes widened and the large demon backed away from his fallen foe.  
  
"Gigadramon Shinka..."  
  
Gigadramon transformed himself into a humongous machine Digimon! He stood far taller than even the manor! He was a grey color, and had two large cannons on his face! He looked down at Rievermon with his red eyes and span a blade on his arm around menacingly, smashing his tail down on the ground.  
  
"... MACHINEDRAMON!!!"  
  
James was driving in his brand new convertible that he just bought up in the direction of his manor, going to meet his father before their court meeting against Father Flannigan. He screeched to a stop in the middle of the country road as he saw a huge burst of light, accompanied by the metal monolith known as Machinedramon.  
  
"What the hell?!" exclaimed James, hardly believing his eyes. "Is that Lee?!"  
  
- - -  
  
Rievermon, Hieshi and all the gathering bystanders were staring in shock at the newly evolved mechanic monster. Machinedramon growled with a technological pitch to his voice. Lee simply grinned, knowing the battle was won.  
  
"Now you're mine!" screamed Lee, maniacally. "Machinedramon, kill that pathetic demon Digimon and then incinerate Ali's murderer!"  
  
"As you wish!" shouted Machinedramon back. Rievermon snarled and flew up to Machinedramon's head level.  
  
"I'm not scared of you," Rievermon told him. "And I'll prove it. DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
Rievermon leapt forward and began slashing at Machinedramon! In size comparison, Rievermon was barely as big as his head. Machinedramon began to spin the blade on his right fist, ignoring Rievermon's attack completely.  
  
"DRAGON FIRE!!!" he bellowed, smashing Rievermon with the blade! Rievermon smashed through the cement of the walkway as he was smashed downwards, but still managed to get up and leapt at Machinedramon again!  
  
"I'm undefeatable!" screamed Rievermon.  
  
"GIGA CANNON!!!"  
  
Machinedramon had aimed his cannons at the demon and fired huge blasts from each, both of them smashing into him at light speed! Rievermon screamed and lost consciousness the second the hit him. He passed out, collapsing into the dirt.  
  
"Now stomp on him! Kill him!" commanded Lee. "I want Hieshi to suffer a loss just like I did!"  
  
Machinedramon began to stomp slowly towards the fallen Rievermon. Hieshi balled his hands into fists, knowing there was nothing he could do.  
  
"Lee! What the hell are you doing?!" screamed a voice.  
  
"James?!" exclaimed James and Hieshi's dad. James ran past him and Enrique onto the battlefield.  
  
"Little brother?!" hissed Hieshi, fairly annoyed to see his brother there.  
  
Lee didn't even turn to look at James. He continued to watch with satisfaction as Machinedramon inched closer and closer to killing Rievermon.  
  
"James, this is between me and Hieshi. I'll make Hieshi pay for killing Alison!" snarled Lee.  
  
"You killed Ali!?" screamed James at Hieshi. Hieshi shrugged.  
  
"He's gone insane!" shouted back Hieshi in his defense. "I've been here the whole day! Right father?!"  
  
His dad, still completely stunned by this whole event, managed to force himself to nod. James looked at Lee, waiting to see his reaction.  
  
"Machinedramon! Stand down!" ordered Lee. Machinedramon stopped in his tracks, just a few feet away from Rievermon. Lee turned to James.  
  
"What happened to your arm? How did it get better?" wondered Lee.  
  
"What do you mean, better? My arm is my arm, I use it to grab stuff," answered James, skeptically. "You running a fever?"  
  
"What about the blizzard?" inquired Lee, actually glancing around for the first time. "Why isn't there any snow on the ground?!"  
  
"You ARE insane!" shouted James. "We haven't had snow for a week!"  
  
Lee looked at James, who was wondering about his mental health. He then looked at Hieshi, who was wondering what Lee was talking about as well. He gripped his head in pain.  
  
"Argh! This doesn't make any sense!" hissed Lee. "I... Hieshi!"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Do you know a man named Matt Irvine?"  
  
Hieshi paused for a second and then nodded.  
  
"Yes. He is the man responsible for the Shadow data and the other Yami Chosen, as far as I know."  
  
Lee looked at his Yami D-Volver and then at Machinedramon. This wasn't the right path for him to be taking... but right now he was going to have to roll with it.  
  
"Where is he?"  
  
_(Irvine set Lee against me using a mind trick. Amara probably,)_ deduced Hieshi, while deciding whether to answer Lee's question or not. "I'd say an alliance is in order. I will show you to Irvine's base."  
  
Hieshi made Rievermon return to Levelermon and pocketed him. Lee and Hieshi then ran over to Machinedramon, who picked them up in his claw.  
  
"What about me?" asked James.  
  
"I'm not risking anyone getting hurt," Lee told him. "You stay here."  
  
"But..."  
  
"Shut up, James," Hieshi told him. "Leave this to the people who know how to fight."  
  
Machinedramon shifted his cannons direction so they were pointed downwards and used them as rockets to blast himself into the air. He then propelled himself back over the skies of Tamur, following Hieshi's directions.  
  
"Well... good luck I guess..." sighed James, feeling left out.  
  
"James, you can start by telling me what the hell just happened," said his dad, walking over. James sweat-dropped.  
  
"Yay," he groaned sarcastically.  
  
Machinedramon landed in front of Irvine's warehouse, and Lee nodded. This is where he woke up earlier. He and Hieshi were let down onto the cement surrounding the warehouse.  
  
"So they're in there?" inquired Lee.  
  
"Underground," replied Hieshi. "Machinedramon won't fit."  
  
"I'm getting stiff anyway," said Machinedramon, reverting to his Perfect form of Gigadramon. "Now don't mind if I knock. DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!"  
  
Gigadramon blasted the door and it came crashing down on the inside of the warehouse. He returned to his Child form of Kokuwamon and the three of them leapt through the wreckage to the inside.  
  
"What's this? This is just a bunch of boxes," observed Lee.  
  
Hieshi ran over to the far wall, where there was a steel door with a numerical pass code to the right of the door. Lee and Kokuwamon dashed over as Hieshi randomly pushed buttons on it, coming up with nothing.  
  
"Can't figure out the pass code?" asked Lee.  
  
Hieshi threw Levelermon into the air and evolved him back to Rievermon. Rievermon slashed the door down in one attempt.  
  
"There's my pass code," replied Hieshi, running down the long flight of stairs. Rievermon, Lee and Kokuwamon followed him.  
  
"Quick recovery..." noted Kokuwamon of Levelermon. "Must be since it's night time."  
  
"Who cares? We're about to put a stop to this crap once and for all," replied Lee. "And Alison better still be breathing... for their sakes."  
  
Hieshi, Lee and their partners ran into the enormous transport room that the Yami Chosen fought in the first time they made their way down here. Rievermon and Kokuwamon stopped in their tracks, and both boys turned to look at them.  
  
"What is it now?" asked Hieshi.  
  
"Shadow data..." gasped Rievermon. "Alot more than we sensed in Lee..."  
  
Suddenly the doors on both ends slammed shut and the transport mechanism began to activate. All the hundred of red circles around the room began to light up like a scorching sun, blinding all four of them.  
  
When they could see again, Lee saw a very familiar blonde girl standing at the other end of the transport room. Tammy, still in her dojo uniform since the scientists had not let allowed her to leave, was what they transported in.  
  
"Who the hell is this?" asked Hieshi.  
  
"Tammy!" exclaimed Lee. "So you are a Yami Chosen now..."  
  
"Hello Lee," she said to him, putting her hands on her hips. "Are you and your friend ready to be destroyed?"  
  
"Friend is an overstatement," replied Lee. "Hieshi, we're in big shit..."  
  
"Why? How strong can one girl, especially one as pretty as that, be?"  
  
"Well she wasted all nine of the others, lets put it that way," answered Lee. Hieshi's eyes widened as he studied Tammy over. He still didn't see how she could be dangerous.  
  
"Death is upon you fools," she said, holding up her Yami D-Volver. She summoned ArcaDemon Child in front of her. The demonic Digimon brandished his claws at them.  
  
"That's only a Child!" exclaimed Hieshi. "Does she expect to--"  
  
"Hieshi, be careful!" warned Rievermon. "As far as Childs go, that one is exceptional! I--"  
  
"ERASE SICKLE!!!" screamed ArcaDemon, leaping forward and slashing Rievermon, sending him crashing into the wall of the transport room. Lee pulled his Yami D-Volver off of his belt and thrusted it at Kokuwamon.  
  
"Kokuwamon Shinka... TECKUWAGAMON!!!"  
  
"TecKuwagamon Shinka... GIGADRAMON!!!"  
  
"Go further!" ordered Lee. Gigadramon shook his head.  
  
"Machinedramon is too big! I'd end up crushing you all!" replied Gigadramon. "DRAGON STRANGLE!!!"  
  
Gigadramon wrapped his serpent-like tail around ArcaDemon, immobilizing him and lifting him into the air.  
  
"Now, Rievermon!" shouted Gigadramon to his ally. The black demon nodded and spread his wings, soaring at ArcaDemon! ArcaDemon snarled, but was unable to break free of Gigadramon's iron grip!  
  
"DEATH REAPER!!!"  
  
Rievermon slashed ArcaDemon across the head swiftly, sending him flying and collapsing on the ground next to Tammy. The blonde Yami Chosen scowled at the two Perfects who just took down her partner.  
  
"How's that, Tammy?" asked Lee, smugly. "You're done, now quit this and go back home."  
  
"Oh Lee, you only wish I was that easy to defeat. That way it would be easier for you two to delude yourselves into thinking you're strong," she replied. "ArcaDemon, show them your real power!"  
  
"ArcaDemon Child Shinka..."  
  
ArcaDemon transformed into a new, larger demon with freakishly long arms and legs. His face stayed relatively the same as he reveled in his new power.  
  
"... ARCADEMON ADULT!!!"  
  
"Oh man... oh no..." gasped Lee as he and Hieshi backed away, leaving the fighting to the Digimon. Gigadramon and Rievermon both assumed an offensive stance.  
  
"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!" screamed Gigadramon, firing missiles directly at ArcaDemon from his palm cannons. ArcaDemon outstretched his gangly arms and simply slapped both the missiles, causing them to explode harmlessly in front of him.  
  
Rievermon came shooting through the explosion caused by the missiles and kneed ArcaDemon right in the head! The Adult level Digimon fell backwards onto the floor, but then balled his right hand into a fist.  
  
"PRISON FIST!!!" he shouted, smashing Rievermon with it. Rievermon suddenly became encased in a sticky green substance, preventing him from moving! He dropped to the ground, struggling to get it off of himself.  
  
"Hey, that's not fair!" exclaimed Lee. "Gigadramon, get him out of there!"  
  
Gigadramon flew forward, but ArcaDemon raised his other hand at him, this time open-palmed.  
  
"SNATCH WHIP!!!"  
  
Dozens of tentacles shot out of his green hand and wrapped themselves head to tail around Gigadramon! Hieshi and Lee both gasped as they realized both their partners were immobilized!  
  
"This form isn't as powerful as the child form, instead he relies on immobilizing his opponents!" shouted Hieshi.  
  
"Well how do we un-immobilize them?" asked Lee.  
  
"You ask as if I'm supposed to know!?" shouted Hieshi back.  
  
ArcaDemon grabbed Rievermon in his right hand and Gigadramon in his left, hoisting them both into the air! Tammy laughed at Hieshi and Lee.  
  
"So Lee, it looks like I'm the best fighter after all!" she gloated triumphantly. "I would've wasted you in the tournament if you didn't run like a coward."  
  
"Tammy! Where is Alison?!" demanded Lee.  
  
"Oh, her. She might not be around much longer if you keep this up... but what can you do? ArcaDemon is the most powerful Digimon on two worlds!!!"  
  
"She's right!" growled Hieshi. "I'm not stupid, and I know when we're beat. We need to retreat!"  
  
"How?" asked Lee, kicking the steel door behind them. "We're locked in the lion's den!"  
  
"Go for her then! If ArcaDemon attacks us, it might give our partners time to free themselves!" suggested Hieshi, formulating what he thought to be a plan.  
  
"That's crazy! ... I like it," replied Lee.  
  
Both boys nodded and Hieshi ran to the left of ArcaDemon, heading for Tammy, while Lee did the same on the right! Tammy frantically looked back and forth between the two of them.  
  
"I can take you two!" she growled.  
  
"Can you?!" yelled Hieshi back, attempting to intimidate her. She bit her lip. She wasn't sure of herself at all.  
  
"ArcaDemon! Help!" she screamed, covering her head in fear.  
  
ArcaDemon dropped the two Perfects, and leapt over in front of Hieshi, he stopped in his tracks and slipped, falling onto his butt. ArcaDemon picked him up and hurled him across the room, him smashing into Lee! The two of them collapsed into a heap on the floor of the transport room.  
  
"Rragh!" growled Rievermon, ripping the goo off of him. He went to attack ArcaDemon again, but then noticed Gigadramon tied up on the floor. "Hmmm... as much as i hate to admit it, I'll need _his_ help."  
  
Rievermon leapt over and slashed Gigadramon free from his bondage in one quick motion. The dragon spread his metal wings and flew up into the air above Rievermon.  
  
"Ugh... take him, guys!" encouraged Lee, groaning from being hit by Hieshi.  
  
"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!"  
  
Rievermon leapt onto one of Gigadramon's missiles and rode it in ArcaDemon's direction! ArcaDemon was about to dodge the missile, but Rievermon leapt forward off of it and directly at him!  
  
"DEATH REAPER!!!" he screamed, slashing ArcaDemon across the head! Rievermon flew past him, and a woozy ArcaDemon looked up... just in time to get hit by both missiles!!! Everyone waited for the smoke from the explosion to clear.  
  
"Did that do it?" asked Hieshi, standing up. Lee pulled himself up next to him.  
  
"We'll find out in a second."  
  
Tammy, Lee, Hieshi and the two Perfects all gasped in shock when they saw ArcaDemon Child lain out on the floor, unconscious.  
  
"Yes!!!" shouted Lee.  
  
"No!" yelled Tammy. "How could this happen?! The mistress is going to be so mad at me!"  
  
Tammy dropped to her knees and the two boys walked over to her.  
  
"Mistress?" asked Hieshi, confused. "Don't you mean the scientists?"  
  
"You'll soon find out. Alison is down there," she replied. Hieshi grabbed the front of her uniform and pulled her up into the air.  
  
"Listen blonde, you're going to talk, right now!"  
  
Tammy simply passed out due to the overwhelming amount of Shadow data in her. Hieshi grumbled and dropped her onto the floor.  
  
"Lee, we should--"  
  
Hieshi glanced around, he saw a fallen ArcaDemon and Tammy, as well as Gigadramon and Rievermon, but no Lee.  
  
"Crap. Why did he run off by himself? Idiot!"  
  
Lee was making his way quickly down to the lower floors of the scientist's base, the blonde boy intent on finding Alison. He came to another door, but this one was unlocked. He whipped it open--  
  
-- and was punched in the face by Irvine. He fell backwards onto the ground, moaning and rubbing his jaw.  
  
"Ugh. Who would've thought that even YOU would be able to resist the control of the Shadow?" asked Irvine disgusted.  
  
"You're the guy who set me against Hieshi..." groaned Lee.  
  
"Well you don't have amnesia, I see," said Irvine. "Now what to do with you? I could kill you..."  
  
"No, Irvine!" shouted a female voice from behind him. "Leave Trainer to me."  
  
"I know that voice..." gasped Lee.  
  
He glanced up, and Irvine moved out of his view. Standing there was a familiar girl, with long soft-brownish, raspberry colored hair. Her entire body was covered in what looked like a black bodysuit, but Lee knew it was actually a coating of Shadow data, which served as armor to protect her. She wore a grin on her face that gave Lee flashbacks to a year ago. She glared down at him with her grassy green eyes.  
  
"Desiree?!" exclaimed Lee, in shock to see her here.   
  
"That's right, Lee. And from this moment on, I'm going to make your life a living hell!"


	17. Yami No More

Amara and Ray peered around the corner at the cell where Ali was being help to see Green put his book away, get up and wander off. They grinned and tiptoed around to the cell door.  
  
"Now we can get her the hell out of here..." whispered Amara.  
  
Ray grabbed the handle of the door and tugged on it, pulling with all his might. Eventually, he succeeded in opening it. Amara stepped inside to find Ali.  
  
"Ali? Look, I know we have our differences but I'm here to resc-- what the hell happened to you?!"  
  
"Whoa..." gasped Ray, looking into the cell at Ali. "This could be a problem..."  
  
- - -  
  
Lee was shocked to see Desiree returned to Tamur, especially in league with the scientists... and worse; the Shadow. He rose to his feet to face the raspberry-haired girl. She was still grinning, as if she had won a battle they had not yet fought.  
  
"What? How? Why?" he asked. "You moved a year ago, but you left us as friends! Remember fighting BlackOmnimon together?! We worked as a team!"  
  
"Perhaps, but an alliance with one's enemies is usually in order when faced with a bigger threat. That's the only reason that fool up there allied with you," answered Desiree.   
  
"The Shadow... are they back?"  
  
"No," she replied. "They're dead. You killed them. Their data still exists however, and is nice for manipulating young new Yami Chosen... and even you, Trainer."  
  
"Desiree, I am tired of this. You promised me we would have access to Trinity Server by now! My associates and I have had enough games!" interjected Irvine at Desiree.  
  
"Silence you old fool," she hissed at him. "You are in no position to be commanding me. Me, the wielder of all the Shadow data!"  
  
Irvine grumbled and shut up. Lee gasped and looked Desiree over again. Her Shadow bodysuit was certainly attractive, but he knew it was deadly.  
  
"Desiree, how did you get the Shadow data...?"  
  
"One question after the next, isn't it, Lee?" she asked, turning around and walking away. "Walk with me."  
  
Lee didn't see he had much choice to follow her. Still rubbing where Irvine punched him earlier, he walked behind her. Irvine turned and then followed him. Desiree continued to talk as she walked.  
  
"Shortly after leaving you, Impy and I encountered a leftover Shadow," she went on to explain. "The Shadow was too strong for Impy and killed him, along with my D-Volver, which weakened the barrier to our server."  
  
"That doesn't answer my question."  
  
"The Shadow then attacked me, leaving a fatal wound in my stomach. I was near death, but it recognized me as one of its' two emissaries, the other being Nathan. It merged it's data into my body, and has since given me the power to control all Shadow data. Without the Shadow, I would have died... I owe them everything."  
  
"My god..."  
  
"In order to gain power, I promised Irvine here that if he could find a team of kids for me to make into my own Chosen, I'd allow him into Trinity Server."  
  
"The Yami Chosen..."  
  
"Yes. Hieshi was an unexpected variable, and Amara was already pre-chosen because of her roots in Trinity Server."  
  
"Her what?" asked Lee, confused. "What does Amara have to do with Trinity Server?"  
  
"I'll keep that to myself for now," she replied, leading him down another corridor. "Anyway, when we realized the current Yami Chosen were not sufficient for the job, we created Tammy's Yami D-Volver. You two were lucky to have beaten her, she only had half the amount of Shadow data as she did when she fought the others."  
  
"Yeah, Ali said she was robot-like the first time... this time she acted fairly human..."  
  
"Yes, my Shadow data resources went into you... and you would've done your job if Amara didn't mess up the dream. I believe she did that on purpose though, because she has feelings for you and didn't want you to kill Hieshi."  
  
"Ali... where is Ali...?"  
  
"You'll see her again soon, don't worry, Lee," she promised him. "But for the moment, I thought you'd like to meet the other scientists. You may be familiar with them..."  
  
Desiree opened a door leading to the scientists' main control room. Green, Lunn and Rathjen were standing there, looking smug. Lee's jaw dropped as he saw the three men.  
  
"No way! Master Lunn?! Dean Rathjen! Albert Green... you're all in on this?!"  
  
"Yes we are, junior," said Rathjen. "I'd be the one who picked Ray to be a Yami Chosen."  
  
"I chose Tammy," added Lunn. "And although your training in the martial arts is strong Lee, you'll never be strong enough to defeat me."  
  
"We'll see!" growled Lee.  
  
"Lee, it's crucial that you join up with us," said Green, using his usual manipulative tone. "Or else something bad might happen to your little girlfriend..."  
  
Irvine walked around and stood in front of the other scientists, taking his place as their leader.  
  
"I chose Jeska and Tori myself, and I've been propagating this operation the entire time. I know everything about you and your friends, your loved ones, and even where you live," Irvine told him. "In short, none of you will escape us!"  
  
Lee heard footsteps behind him and saw Hieshi running towards him, with Kokuwamon flying alongside him. Rievermon was behind, taking up the rear.  
  
"Lee!" shouted Kokuwamon.  
  
"Ah, the defect," said Rathjen of Hieshi. "Your fate was sealed the second you betrayed your fellow Yami Chosen."  
  
"Why? Because I'm not a tool like the rest of them?" he asked, standing next to Lee. "What is this freak show?"  
  
"Those are the four scientists," answered Lee, pointing at the four men standing at the other end of the room. He then pointed at Dezzy, who was standing off to the sidelines. "That's Desiree, the real genius behind this."  
  
"You four take orders from a little skank?" mocked Hieshi at the scientists. "Well I'm sick of this whole thing, Rievermon, rip her apart!"  
  
"Hieshi, no!" Lee tried to warn him, but Rievermon had leapt over them and charged at Desiree. She extended a blade from his wrist and slashed Rievermon with it.  
  
There was a pause for a moment, and then Rievermon crumpled to the ground, only inches away from attacking Desiree. He returned to Levelermon and the rubic cube lay on the floor.  
  
"How the hell did she do that?" gasped Hieshi.  
  
"She's where all the Shadow data is coming from..." Lee informed him. "Which is why it would be smart not to mess with her."  
  
"Speaking of Shadow..." said Green. "Desiree, shall we show Trainer our newest creation?"  
  
"Yes, you may," she answered. She kicked Levelermon back in Hieshi's direction, and he caught his Child partner. Green ran over to a metal door that was opening in the other side of the main room.  
  
"May we introduce you to... the newest Yami Chosen! Alison Williams!"  
  
Ali was standing there, decked out in Shadow armor like Desiree was up to her neck. Her eyes were black like Nathan's and she stared at Lee and Hieshi. Lee felt something inside him break.  
  
"Ali...? No..." gasped Lee, in complete horror of what he was just witnessing. Ali was giving him a very unfamiliar evil grin...  
  
On upper ground, Earnest was driving his new pick-up truck as past as he could in the direction of the warehouse. James was in the passenger seat, holding out his D-Volver giving Earnest instructions on where to go based on the distress signal Lee sent out earlier.  
  
"It's strange, the reading I'm getting is coming from a Yami D-Volver, not one of ours..." said James to Earnest. Earnest raised his eyebrow at him.  
  
"Maybe it's picking up Hieshi's D-Volver or something instead," suggested Earnest. "Hang on Lee, we're almost there!"  
  
Ace, Arik and Nathan were all standing up in the back of the pick-up, holding onto the top of the truck. They saw the warehouse ahead of them.  
  
"There it is!" shouted Nathan, pointing at it. Suddenly the ground began to shake in front of them, making the pick-up swerve. A huge Digimon burst out of it, knocking the truck onto its' side and sending Ace, Nathan and Arik flying onto the street!  
  
Earnest and James groaned, unbuckling their seatbelts so they could clamber out of the right door, which was pointing into the air. They gaped at the huge black Digimon, which stared down at them with its' mouth hanging open.  
  
"You act as if you don't recognize me!" the Digimon said to them. "I was IceDevimon, but have evolved to my Perfect state of MarineDevimon!"  
  
Earnest and James noticed that in three of his four arms, he was holding a different Perfect. Teferimon, Sapphiremon and Zephyrmon were all in his grip.  
  
"It's time to kill you!" shouted Zephyrmon. "Our chances for victory are 100 percent!"  
  
"Our mission must be accomplished! We will not fail again!" added Sapphiremon. "We came here from Trinity Server under the promise that we would kill you!"  
  
"Jeska and the others will lose us if we do! You must understand our position, Hikari Chosen!" shouted Teferimon. "This is our final chance. It's nothing personal."  
  
"But now you must die," finished MarineDevimon. "DARK DELUGE!!!"  
  
MarineDevimon launched a bubble of darkness from his mouth directly at James and Earnest! They leapt backwards off the truck just in time to avoid being destroyed along with it!  
  
"Aw man! My truck!" whined Earnest, annoyed.  
  
"Now you know how I feel," said James, referencing to his car being blown up by Dyactoralmon in an earlier fight. "Arik, Nathan, Ace, Earnest, let's take these rejects!"  
  
"Uhm, you do realize I was just thrown out of the back of a truck, right?" groaned Nathan, attempting to stand up.  
  
"Yeah right!" yelled Tori. "You idiots have no hope!"  
  
She, Amara, Jeska and Ray were standing just outside the warehouse door Gigadramon busted down earlier. The four of them looked ready to fight just like their partners were.  
  
"Ace, you're not going to win this time!"  
  
"Yeah, we'll see about that!" he countered, whipping out his D-Volver. The others did the same.  
  
Back in the scientists' lair, Lee ran over to Ali, shoving Green out of his way. He grabbed her by the shoulders and began to shake her.  
  
"Ali! Snap out of it! Please tell me you're still Ali!" he pleaded.  
  
"Silence," she responded, smashing him across the face with her fist and knocking him onto the floor. "You've never done anything but ruin my life!"  
  
"What?! You know that's not true!" shouted Lee in his defense. "Desiree! Give me my girlfriend back!"  
  
"Hmmm, no. This is payback for what you did to me," said Dezzy. Tammy walked into the room, pushing her way past Hieshi and walking over to Dezzy. Dezzy wrapped her arm around Tammy.  
  
"I'm keeping this fine-looking young lady too," she said, licking Tammy's cheek. Tammy giggled and motioned for Ali to come over to them.  
  
"That's weird..." gasped Hieshi, raising his eyebrow at Dezzy and Tammy.  
  
"You see, the more it hurts you to have your friends obey me, the more fun it is," said Dezzy, wrapping her other arm around Ali.  
  
Lee balled his hands into fists. He seriously needed to find a way to break the Shadow spells on Tammy and Ali. But he didn't know the first thing about it, and besides, there was no way he can fight Dezzy without combining with Kokuwamon.  
  
"But in order to maintain control of my lovely ladies, I need Shadow data... and I'm running a bit low... so I'll just have to BORROW SOME!!!" she yelled, menacingly.  
  
Desiree released Tammy and Ali, then outstretched her right arm at Lee. The Shadow data dissolved off of his D-Volver and it transformed back into a Hikari D-Volver! Desiree absorbed the data into her palm.  
  
"Now you're back to normal," she said to Lee, smiling sweetly. She then turned to Hieshi, who assumed a defensive stance. "This process however might be more painful for you."  
  
"What do you mean by that, witch?" he hissed.  
  
She stretched out her arm in Hieshi's direction and he began to scream in pain as Shadow data was ripped from the inside of his body.   
  
"Hieshi... I feel weird..." groaned Levelermon as Hieshi fell to his knees, dropping Levelermon on the metal floor. Hieshi's D-Volver broke up into Shadow data, as did Levelermon! Both; along with the Shadow data taken out of Hieshi himself, were absorbed into Desiree's body!  
  
"Oh my god..." gasped Lee. "No! Hieshi!"  
  
Hieshi growled as the pain began to subside, but he couldn't stop staring in shock at the spot where Levelermon was just laying on the floor. He was gone now.  
  
"No... Levelermon..." growled Hieshi, for the first time ever showing some sort of emotion. "He's... gone..."  
  
Hieshi lay silent, staring at the floor, and Lee was shocked as well. He glared at Dezzy, who still had Tammy and Ali with her. Lee was about ready to snap.  
  
The silence was broken by Rathjen, who was sitting at a control console.  
  
"Ms. Skyelander, we have a situation outside," he announced. They all looked at the control console to see the Yami and Hikari Chosen ripping up the neighborhood as they fought. Lee gasped again.  
  
"I've got to help them! Forgive me, Ali... I'll be back for you! You too Tammy! I promise!"  
  
Tammy and Ali simply gave Lee a blank stare as he ran for the door, regretting leaving Ali there. She was safe... he wasn't so sure about his other friends. He jumped over Hieshi and ran down the end of the hall to the circular elevator. He jumped inside of it.  
  
"Great... how do I work this thing?!"  
  
Desiree turned to the scientists and scowled at the images on the computer screen.  
  
"I'm sick of their incompetence. If they don't win, this will be their last battle," she told the scientists. She walked over to Hieshi. "You're just as sad as they are..."  
  
Desiree kicked Hieshi in the side, and he flew against the wall hard! She then turned and walked calmly down the hallway after Lee...  
  
Tori, Jeska, Ray and Amara stood behind their four Perfects, facing off against temporary Hikari leader James, with Ace, Arik, Earnest and Nathan supporting him. The night added a level of darkness to this face-off, both teams knowing that one of them would fall for the final time.  
  
"Come on, we've whipped these losers before!" shouted Ace to encourage them. "This time will be no different!"  
  
"That's what you think!" snapped Tori. "Amara's got a special skill she'd like to show you all!"  
  
"We're about ready for anything..." said Nathan, reaching for his D-Volver. Suddenly his hand froze before he could grab it. "Huh?! What the heck? I can't move!"  
  
"Neither can I!" shouted Earnest from behind him.   
  
"Argh! We're all frozen! But how?!" exclaimed James, his hand inches away from touching his D-Volver. He struggled and tried using all his force, but his entire body aside from his head was frozen in place.  
  
Amara was standing with her three companions, both temples on her foreheads, concentrating as hard as she could. She had to ignore the fact that it was freezing out, and she was only clothed in her pink sweater, which wasn't the best shield from the cold.  
  
"Amara here is using her telepathic powers to create the illusion of not being able to move..." explained Jeska. "Your weak minds can't handle the pressure of my brilliant idea..."  
  
"Let's not waste any more time," said Tori, overlooking the five frozen boys. "Zephyrmon, rip them to pieces!"  
  
"No! I want Teferimon to do it! I've earned this by actually doing something, unlike you slackers!" argued Jeska. Tori and her glared each other down.  
  
"How about MarineDevi--"  
  
"Shut up, Ray!" shouted both of them. Ray cringed and was silent, just like Amara, who was concentrating too hard to argue.  
  
"Why don't we each just pick one and kill him? Then we can all massacre the last," suggested Teferimon. Both girls and Ray nodded in agreement, and the four Perfects began to advance on them.  
  
"Wah! Lemme go!" screamed Ace, shaking his head rapidly, unable to struggle. "I'm too young and beautiful to die!"  
  
The other four struggled too, but it was no use... MarineDevimon was right overtop of them, leering at them evilly. They all stared into his fangs with fright.  
  
"Which one of you should I devour? Hmmm... entree number one... two... three... or four...?"  
  
"How about entree number five?! DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!" screamed Gigadramon. MarineDevimon turned suddenly to catch a face full of missiles! The huge aquamarine demon was sent flying over the statue-like boys and crashing into the water off the pier behind them.  
  
"What was that?!" exclaimed Zephyrmon, turning suddenly along with Teferimon, Sapphiremon and the Yami Chosen except for Amara to see where the missiles came from.  
  
Gigadramon and Lee were standing in front of the warehouse and both of them looked pissed. Jeska, Ray and Tori all grunted, their plans foiled... slightly.  
  
"You?!" yelled Jeska.  
  
"Lee! We thought you'd never come!" shouted James, happily. "Funny thing is, we were coming to rescue you!"  
  
"I'm sick of this shit," growled Lee. "I won't sit by and watch any more of my friends be hurt! I'm going to beat the living hell out of you... and then I'm going to save Ali!"  
  
"What happened to Ali?!" exclaimed Ace. "Argh, damn being frozen!"  
  
"You think one perfect can take four? HA!" laughed Tori. "Get him!"  
  
Sapphiremon and Zephyrmon flew up into the air, soaring at the grey dragon! All eyes were on the two curvaceous female warriors as they prepared to attack him!  
  
"You're about to get a big surprise! Gigadramon, show them what you can do!!!" yelled Lee, thrusting his recreated Hikari D-Volver at the gray dragon. Gigadramon folded his arms in front of his head in meditation as he began to glow.  
  
"What?" gasped Sapphiremon, her and Zephyrmon stopping in mid-flight. Gigadramon began to evolve again.  
  
"Gigadramon Shinka... MACHINEDRAMON!!!"  
  
The mechanical goliath let out a thunderous roar of anger, just as furious as Lee was. His first target was the two females hovering in front of him.  
  
"Attack him!" hissed Zephyrmon, frozen in fear.  
  
"You attack him!" hissed Sapphiremon back, just as scared.  
  
"GIGA CANNON!!!" yelled Machinedramon, blasting both Perfects at point-blank range! He looked around, searching for his next target.  
  
"Machinedramon is amazing..." gasped Earnest. "It's about time OUR side had an advantage!"  
  
"We'll see how long that lasts!" shouted Jeska. "Teferimon, take him!"  
  
"Oh yeah, what am I supposed to do?! My shape shifting won't work on a Digimon of his power level!" exclaimed Teferimon skeptically. "Remember when I tried to shift into ArcaDemon?!"  
  
Machinedramon pointed his cannons at Teferimon, who put his hands in the air. Machinedramon hesitated.  
  
"What are you doing?!" shouted Lee. "Would he hesitate to hurt us?! Blast the hell out of him!"  
  
"Lee stop it!" yelled Amara, letting go of her concentration on the Hikari Chosen. "You're... scaring me. You look like a Hikari Chosen but you're acting just as bad as any of us!"  
  
"Hey, I can move again!" exclaimed Earnest, as the five boys were freed from Amara's grip.  
  
"Good, I REALLY had to scratch myself somewhere down low..."  
  
"Dude, Ace..." groaned Nathan, covering his eyes. Arik tapped him on the shoulder and pointed at the bay, where MarineDevimon had re-emerged from the water.  
  
"I--" began Lee, moved by Amara's plea. "Oh my god... you're right. I was so enraged about losing Ali... I..."  
  
"You are lucky, Teferimon," Jeska told him. Suddenly the red-headed girl gasped when she saw MarineDevimon behind Machinedramon.  
  
"DARK DELUGE!!!" yelled MarineDevimon from behind Machinedramon, hurling darkness at him.  
  
"MarineDevimon, no!" protested Ray.  
  
Machinedramon was hit in the back, caught completely off-guard! The huge metal Digimon fell forward, beginning to plummet to the ground... right overtop Amara!  
  
"Amara, no!" screamed Lee.  
  
"Look out!" pleaded Tori.  
  
"Move!!!" yelled James.  
  
Amara glanced up in fear, her life flashing before her eyes... right before being crushed underneath Machinedramon!!!  
  
"NO!!!" cried Lee, tears swelling in his eyes. "Argh! Machinedramon, return to Child form now!!!"  
  
All eyes were on Machinedramon as he returned to Kokuwamon. And Amara was standing there, completely unharmed and swirling with dark energy. She seemed just as shocked as everyone else, raising her hands to see dark energy encircling them like the rest of her body.  
  
"What...?" she gasped. "What is this?"  
  
"I did it," said Desiree, walking out of the warehouse and extending her hand in Amara's direction. "You are worthy of saving."  
  
"Desiree, you saved her?" asked Lee, completely surprised and relieved.  
  
"How can Desiree be here?!" exclaimed Ace. He, Arik, Nathan, James and Earnest were all watching with their jaws hanging open. "And how is she commanding the Shadow again?"  
  
"So she's the one responsible for the Shadow data..." realized Earnest.  
  
Desiree released the shield of darkness around Amara and walked past the Yami Chosen into the center of the action, where she could have everyone's attention.  
  
"Ace, Earnest, James, nice to see you again," she said to them, pleasantly.  
  
"Hmph," grunted James.  
  
"Now, onto business... you Yami Chosen continue to fail time after time, and yet you expect more chances..."  
  
"Wait! Who the hell are you?!" asked Jeska, rudely. "You think you can just walk out here in your skanky little uniform and expect us to listen to your crap?"  
  
Desiree looked at Jeska, who glared at her. Desiree simply grinned.  
  
"You sound so tough from over there, hiding behind Teferimon," Desiree told her. "What if I told you I wanted my Shadow data back from your mouthy self?"  
  
"What was that?!"  
  
Desiree reached her hand out in Jeska's direction, mainly at her D-Volver. Desiree crunched her hand into a fist, and along with it; Jeska's D-Volver exploded! Desiree absorbed the Shadow data back into her body.  
  
"Jes--" was all Teferimon got out before shorting out and exploding. Jeska's eyes widened in complete horror as all the onlookers gasped.  
  
"Holy shit!" exclaimed Nathan. "Look what she just did!"  
  
"You... you bitch!" screamed Jeska. She balled up her fists and ran at Desiree as fast as she could, but Desiree simply backhanded her, sending her crashing into Nathan and Earnest! Desiree grinned with satisfaction as she looked at the distraught group of Ray, Tori, Amara and Lee.  
  
"Ray... you're so useless you almost killed your own teammate," Desiree told him. "You have five seconds to say goodbye to MarineDevimon."  
  
"No! Please!" pleaded Ray.  
  
"Four, three, two, one... my data returned," said Desiree, heartlessly. In a similar motion she made to Jeska, she crushed his D-Volver and returned the data to herself.  
  
"Aaa---" droned off MarineDevimon, as he broke up into data.  
  
Next, Desiree turned to Tori. Tori grimaced in fear.  
  
"No! You won't take my partner! Zephyrmon, stop her!!!"  
  
Zephyrmon pulled herself from a stationary state of fear and flew at Desiree, who didn't even turn to look at her.  
  
"PHOTON ORBS!!!" screamed Zephyrmon, blasting Desiree with the two circular bombs! The harpy Digimon then brought her leg back as she approached the smoke from the explosion.  
  
"HURRICANE KICK!!!"  
  
Zephyrmon repeatedly kicked the solid form still hidden in the smoke as fast as she could! Everyone was staring in awe, wondering if she was defeating Desiree or not.  
  
"Could she be doing it...?" gasped Ace in wonderment.  
  
Suddenly Zephyrmon screamed out and deleted. Tori glanced down and noticed her D-Volver was no longer there, and the data was absorbed into the now-visible Desiree. Tori dropped to her knees.  
  
"No... I can't believe this..."  
  
"Not even a scratch," gasped Lee. "She's even more powerful than she was before..."  
  
"I'm next... a-aren't I..." asked Amara, choking up.  
  
Desiree shook her head.  
  
"You, I give a choice. You can relinquish your D-Volver and join your pathetic companions. Or: you may join with me and learn about your past... what made you into the freak you are today," Desiree told her. (Hmph, Amara doesn't need to know I really need her psychic powers for something that is in a much bigger picture than this...)  
  
"Amara! You have to come with us!" pleaded Lee.  
  
"Lee... I'll decide... by reading your mind..."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
Amara touched him on the cheek softly and closed her eyes. Lee, Desiree, and everyone else waited to see what her decision would be.  
  
"Desiree, I'm going with you," answered Amara, walking over to Dezzy.  
  
"What?!" exclaimed Lee. "Why?!"  
  
"Even though I was right here... all you were thinking about was Alison. You don't even care about what just happened to the others, or what will happen to me. It's all about her with you."  
  
"Amara..." sighed Lee in despair.  
  
"The girl has made her choice, Trainer," Desiree said. "I hope you all have a wonderful day."  
  
Desiree and Amara began to swirl with darkness and sunk into the ground. Lee and the five other Hikari Chosen all gasped.  
  
"Great," groaned Nathan. "Now what?"  
  
"Defeat her," said Jeska, leaning on him for support after her throw. "Avenge our partners."  
  
"But she's so strong... and she has Tammy, Amara and... Ali..." sighed Ace. "Lee, I'm so sorry..."  
  
"We'll get them back, all three of them," Lee told Ace. He then looked at Ray and Tori, who were so depressed they weren't speaking. "We'll avenge your partners by defeating Desiree and her scientist allies."  
  
"How are you going to do that?" asked Hieshi, walking out of the warehouse. "You won't fight your precious Alison. That is why Desiree took her."  
  
"Shut up, Hieshi!" shouted James. "You have no idea what Lee is going through!"  
  
"I just lost my partner, little brother! I'm a little beyond pissed right now!" growled Hieshi.  
  
"Everyone shut up..." groaned Lee. "Let's just get out of here before Desiree comes back..."  
  
Lee turned and walked past them all, leaving. Ace, Nathan, Jeska, Earnest, Arik and James followed him. Hieshi looked at Tori and Ray, pulling them up and dragging them with him.  
  
"This is the worst day of my life..." sighed Ray.  
  
"Yeah? Just wait til that Desiree chick starts actually doing shit..." countered Hieshi. "Then we're all screwed..."  
  
- - -  
  
"The balance of power has been turned... and with Alison's D-Volver enshrouded in darkness, it is no longer protecting our Server," said Irvine to Desiree as she walked back in with Amara.  
  
Amara walked over to Tammy and Ali, who were standing perfectly still... almost like robots. Amara sighed at their lack of emotion and sat on the floor, putting her head between her legs.  
  
"I know that," Desiree hissed. "Which means it's time to fulfill my promise to you four gentlemen..."  
  
"You mean...?" began Green.  
  
"Yes. It's time for you to become... Digimon."


	18. The Strongest Link

-1On the northeastern side of Tamur lays a warehouse next to a large body of water. The warehouse looks empty from the outside, but looks can be deceiving. Underneath it is a large metal complex forged by four technological geniuses. Now, the four of them are ready to take the reins of the Digimon project and do what their Yami Chosen couldn't.

"I have a data CD full of every Ultimate level Digimon that we are now able to upload with both Ali and my D-Volvers gone... it is a fairly large list but excludes ones like Omnimon, Armagemon, Mephistomon... or others in their power range," Desiree spoke over a communicator.

The four scientists were all standing in the transport room, side-by-side. Green on the left, Rathjen, Lunn and finally Irvine on the right. A virtual selection screen appeared in front of them all.

"Choose wisely."

Green scrolled through easily, already knowing which Digimon he was going to pick. Lunn seemed just as decided and narrowed his grey eyebrows as he found and selected his Ultimate. Irvine and Rathjen were taking their time and scrolling through the list.

"Hmmm..." muttered Rathjen. "Ebemon... Cannondramon... Piedmon... MetalGarurumon... HerculesKabuterimon... there are too many choices..."

"Take your time, there is no rush," Irvine told him, also undecided. "Choose a form that you are sure will represent your true power..."

"My form will be an extension of my fist and channel my fighting prowess into one thousand times the power," Lunn said, grinning.

"Is this process perfected? We gave the Yami Chosen the power to create Digimon to test the effects of transformation on humans..." began Green. "How did that go?"

"Meramon did not obey, but when adding more Shadow data... Myotismon and MagnaAngemon freely followed Tori and Jeska's orders. With more Shadow data, free will is enabled," answered Irvine. Green grumbled.

"I don't like the idea of more Shadow data..."

"There's alot of things you don't like," said Irvine, waving his comment off. "I have chosen."

"Me too," added Rathjen.

There was silence for a second, and Desiree's voice came crackling over the intercom.

"Alright, gentlemen. Cover your eyes. Remember, there is no going back now..."

The scientists covered their eyes as the dozens of red dots in the transport room glowed, transferring data from Trinity Server in.

"Now for Shadow processing..." continued Desiree. "Remain still, I will use the data retrieved from each Yami Chosen yesterday."

The scientists felt data flow into them. It was a strange, tingling feeling that made them all want to retch. But they were strong men and stood still as their young mistress instructed them. Now they would be able to fight and have power like they always wanted.

The red lights stopped their blinding glow, and vision came back into the scientists' eyes. They glanced around, expecting to three their three cohorts now in the form of three new Digimon.

What they saw was three other men expecting the same reaction. Lunn was the first to speak his mind. The normally calm karate master showed his angry side.

"What the hell is this?! We were promised Digimon forms! I can't become stronger without what you promised us, you double-crossing--"

"Still your tongue, Lunn," interrupted Dezzy, over the intercom. You have the choice to move around in Digimon or human form. We can't get into Trinity Server just yet, so I thought you might wish to live your normal lives until then."

"How much longer?" asked Green.

"One more destroyed D-Volver should do it."

"Then I will do it myself," said Green. "I can lure Trainer out and win the election at once... by destroying his father with my new power!"

"You're challenging Trainer?" asked Irvine, almost sarcastically. "Why not pick off Klentz, Pearson or Chambers?"

"It's called confidence, my friend. Picking off weak links is only going to keep you weak and confident until the strong link picks you off."

"Good luck, for your wife's sake..." said Irvine, shaking his hand. Green nodded and left the transport room. He wouldn't lose. He couldn't lose.

i My my... things will be heating up soon... /i thought Desiree. i Me and my girls will have to go check it out... /i 

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Seventeen: The Strongest Link /u /b 

"Lee... Lee... you're coming to college today, right?" asked Nathan. He and Ace were peering in the doorway to Lee's room, where Lee had not removed his face from his pillow since they arrived home late last night.

Ace and Nathan looked at each other and sighed.

"Maybe he suffocated," suggested Ace. "I'll get a stick to poke him with."

"Come on Lee..." pleaded Nathan. "I'm the one with the black eyes, so you can at least go out in public."

"I'll buy you a pie..." said Ace, winking.

The blonde boy removed his head from the fabric of the pillow and scratched his messy hair. His eyes were red, indicating he didn't get much or he was crying... or both.

"Unless you have Ali with you, I don't care what you're offering," he sighed. "My girlfriend is pregnant and possessed by a psycho..."

"That's alot of 'p' words..." observed Nathan.

"Fine..." said Ace. "Then I'm taking your car!"

Ace turned and bolted out the doorway and Lee stared at Nathan, who just shrugged.

"Ace! Wait! You don't have a license!" yelled Lee.

Nathan picked the keys up off of Lee's dresser and jingled them in the air.

"Or your keys," he said. "Now hurry up or I'll take it."

Nathan left and Lee groaned, getting out of bed. Maybe going to school would help him forget about Ali's situation. Of course, when Lee was depressed, it often took alot to get him out of his state of mind...

- - -

A bit later at RTC, Ace and Nathan were attending P.E. class along with Lee. Lee usually did his P.E. credits down at the dojo, but there was no way in hell he was going back there after what he discovered about Master Lunn. So he decided to tough it out and head to class with Ace and Nathan.

"Alright people, today we're doing lacrosse!" shouted Coach Wilson, blowing the whistle around his neck that signaled the class to gather. Lee looked around at the myriad of students and noted that Amara was not present in the class.

i I lost Amara too... her and Ali in one day, what a record... /i 

"Now, I'm picking two teams and the rest of you can go sit on the benches," he said, pointing to the bleachers on the side of the field. "It's damn freezing out, so I'll try to get you all being as active as possible!"

Lee and Nathan got picked onto teams, but Ace had to go sit on the bleachers. He noticed Tori was sitting on the far end of the bleachers by herself. He got up all his courage and walked across the metal plank towards her.

"Hey... uhm... Tori," he said, gulping. "How's the un-Yaminess?"

"It sucks," she growled, scowling and not even looking up from staring at the grass. "I never wanted to be part of this whole Digimon thing in the first place, but now that it's gone..."

"I know, you got attached to your partner..." assumed Ace, the short-haired boy sitting down next to her. "We had our D-Volvers destroyed once too by Desiree back in the day..."

"What happened?"

"Well... Lee kept his... and we traveled to Trinity Server to get our partners back..." he explained. "But getting into there isn't easy anymore... we'd have to..."

"Kill one of you..." sighed Tori. "I hate Desiree. I didn't even know who she was until she walked out and started killing destroying our most precious possessions..."

"Look, Tori... I can't guarantee I'll be able to get Kazemon back-- although she's damn hot and I'd love to see her again-- I promise you that me and Lee will defeat Desiree."

"Really?" she asked, with a sparkle of hope in her eyes. Ace nodded.

"Yeah, we'll kick her Shadow butt, free Ali and Amara, waste those scientists, somehow magically defeat ArcaDemon, figure out a way to get into Trinity Server, and face unknown dangers to get you guys your partners back!" he shouted, jumping to his feet.

Tori stared at him in disbelief.

"Doesn't that seem like a pretty unrealistic list?"

Ace fell over.

"But... thanks for trying to cheer me up," she sighed. "You did more than Ray, all he did was cry."

"Anything for a... uhm... you," he replied, somewhat embarrassed to be receiving praise from such an attractive girl.

"Me? That's all I am?"

"Well... you're... uh..."

"Chambers!" yelled Coach Wilson, shattering the little world Ace and Tori were in. "You're on! Trainer, you're off!"

Ace smiled and hopped off the bench, walking across the field past Lee. Coach Wilson slapped him on the back and handed him a lacrosse stick.

"Lacrosse is a real man's sport, Ace! Just remember, a man isn't a man until he's been hit in the testacles by a lacrosse stick!"

"Wh-what?" stammered Ace, almost dazed as Coach Wilson threw him into play. The energetic coach then ran over to the benches where Tori was sitting.

"Estrada, have you seen Amara? She's been truant from all her classes the morning... as well as her best friend Tammy... leading me to believe that they're skipping."

"Uhhh..." began Tori, not quite knowing what to tell Coach Wilson.

"She and Tammy went on a Karate trip with Master Lunn!" interjected Lee. "That's... why I'm not at karate."

"Alright..." said Coach Wilson, eyeing him suspiciously. "I'll confirm that with Dean Rathjen."

"Oh, I'm sure I know exactly what HE will say," muttered Tori.

"What was that?"

"I said it's a beautiful day."

"And Lee, do you know where..." began Coach Wilson, checking his yellow slips. "Alison Williams is? You two are rather close, are you not?"

"Uh..." began Lee, looking at Tori for help, but she just shrugged.

"OW! Damnit Nathan!!!" they heard Ace scream. "Watch where you swing that thing!"

"Wear a cup!" Nathan yelled back.

"He's a man now..." said Coach Wilson, getting distracted and going to see if Ace was alright. Lee and Tori both sighed with relief.

"Lucky him," groaned Lee.

- - -

After P.E. class had ended, Lee, Ace, Nathan and Tori were walking downstairs to leave the school and grab some lunch. Nathan found it strange that Tori was hanging out with them.

"What is your problem?" asked Tori, giving him the evil eye.

"I'm just not used to being around you without you trying to kill me..." replied Nathan, walking away from her and next to Lee. Tori and Ace, who were walking a bit behind them, both sighed. Ace was holding an ice pack on his crotch.

"Thank god that's over, good for nothing Shadow data..." said Ace.

"Oh, I assure you, Mr. Chambers... people are still trying to kill you," said a voice from the left of where they were walking. The four of them looked to see Dean Rathjen, walking over to them, a menacingly glare coming at them from behind his lenses.

"You..." growled Lee.

"Yes, me," said Rathjen, raising both his fists in front of him. "You'd best enjoy this little bit of relaxation time, for it won't last long..."

"And why not?" questioned Nathan, reaching for his D-Volver. Lee put his hand on Nathan's arm, giving him a reminder that they were in public.

"Oh don't worry about privacy, Mr. Trainer," Rathjen said to them. Lee and Nathan both looked up at him, confused. "Don't know what I mean? Check out the TV..."

The four of them looked up at a television set hanging from the roof that Rathjen pointed to. It was showing the local news.

"... and a huge mechanical monster appeared at Willington Manor last night in the company of Mayoral Candidate Richard Trainer's son; Lee Trainer. Hieshi Willington, son of the richest--"

"No..." gasped Lee, as he, Nathan, Tori and Ace were all stunned by the news.

"-- this only confirms vandalism stories of a fight with monsters instigated in Central Park involving High School students Victoria Estrada, Sam Chambers, Earnest Lightwind--"

"What?" gasped Ace. "How did they find out about that?"

"Remember the man I transformed into Myotismon while under the influence of Shadow Data?" asked Tori.

"-- our cameramen and townsfolk have reported many other strange monster sightings that the media was trying to keep under wraps until we were sure. We're sure. Here is a list of the locations and students involved in this strange phenomenon..."

The female reporter went on to name just about every Yami and Hikari Chosen there was. Lee and the others glanced around the room to see alot of accusing eyes staring at them. They all shifted their glance back to Rathjen, who was grinning.

"There's about to be another strange monster sighting..." Rathjen informed them. "I'm only letting you know because my cohort wants to challenge you personally, Mr. Trainer."

"Who?" asked Lee, getting rather annoyed.

"Let's just say your father's place in the election is at jeopardy..."

"What-- oh no, Green! He's going after my dad!" yelled Lee. He turned and bolted out the door, running for his car. He leapt over the top of the red convertible, landing in the driver's seat. He whipped his keys out of his pocket and jammed them in the ignition, starting it up.

He saw Nathan jump in the passenger's seat.

"Nathan, you don't have to..."

"No way, Lee. I'm coming with you and that's final," Nathan told him. "We're all a team here... if we don't fight like one... we'll end up like Hieshi did when he ditched his team."

Lee heard shuffling behind him and saw Ace and Tori sitting in the backseat. He smiled and switched the car into reverse, taking off down the street as fast as he could.

"Well Green, I've led them into your trap..." said Rathjen, standing in the doorway and speaking into a hidden communicator on his tie. "Your idea to feed the media images taken from our Yami D-Volvers was brilliant. Now the Hikari Chosen will have alot more to worry about then just us..."

"Oh, it's not just a trap. I plan to eliminate Mayor Trainer just for kicks. Then his son will fall in line with his father!"

Green fizzled out of the communication with a maniacal laugh. Rathjen simply smiled.

"And you'll set them up for me to make them fall..."

- - -

At city hall, Mayor Trainer was watching the broadcast from his office, and was just as flabbergasted as every other being across Tamur whose eyes were glued to the television set right now. The blonde man straightened his tie and cleared his throat, trying to remain calm.

"Uhm... Gloria... can you clear my schedule for tonight? I want to have dinner with my son..."

"Yes, Mr. Mayor," replied his assistant, exiting the room past his two bodyguards. Trainer returned to thinking about what he had just seen.

"Ah, Mr. Mayor..." said an extremely obnoxious voice. Green strutted into the room, grinning widely. Mayor Trainer eyed him suspiciously.

"What are you doing here, Green? They aren't voting until tomorrow..."

"No, I wanted to discuss something about your son with you... he's a special boy, isn't he...?"

"He's everything in the world to me," replied Trainer.

"Well doesn't it seem odd to you that he and his friends are playing around with Digital Monsters?" asked Green.

"Wait... you know what they're called?!" exclaimed Trainer, jumping up from his desk. "How?!"

"Because..." began Green, hunching over unnaturally. The two security guards began to note his behavior and move towards him. "... I AM ONE!!!"

Green let out a mighty scream, sending both the guard and Mayor Trainer flying back away from him! Shadow data began to swirl around him until he was covered head to toe, and it began to settle in a humanoid form around his body.

He transformed into a black Digimon that stood quite a bit taller than the average human. He was covered in armor and had a grey horned helmet, with hair running down out of the back of it. His forearms had huge claws attached to them.

"Who... what are you?!"

"I am now BlackWarGreymon!" yelled Green, reveling in his new power. "I am the most supreme form of life on this pathetic server! Allow me to demonstrate my power, 'old friend'!"

"He's insane! Shoot him! Shoot him!" ordered Mayor Trainer.

The two bodyguards drew pistols from their jackets and fired upon Green, but the bullets simply bounced off his armor. He turned around, and narrowed his eyes at them from the sockets in his helmet.

"TERRA DESTROYER!!!"

Green hurled a huge red ball of destructive energy at the two men, incinerating them and blowing a huge chunk out of the room! Trainer screamed and backed up against the wall.

"I'm... I'm next... aren't I?"

"You?" asked Green, sarcastically. "No, I have something much more public planned for you."

Green leapt over and grabbed Trainer by his leg, lifting the middle-aged man into the air. He grinned and blasted the wall out, flying into the sky above Tamur!

"What are you going to do to me?!" exclaimed Trainer, fearing for his life.

"Oh, you'll see..."

Green flew over to the large building he knew to be the television station and threw Trainer down on the roof. He stomped his foot on the roof, smashing a hole in it! Pleased, he left Trainer there and leapt down inside, looking at the horrified personnel of the news station.

"Sorry, this broadcast is going to be interrupted," he told them. "Set the frequency to override satellite signals all over the world or forfeit your lives!"

Two tech boys ran to do that was fast as they could, and Green snatched a camera from one reporter. He leapt back up through the hole in the roof, to see Mayor Trainer running for the fire exit.

"Nuh-uh Richard..."

Green grabbed him again and flew up into the sky, pointing the camera into his new armored face with his left hand. He cleared his voice.

"Citizens of the world! I am Albert Green... but you may call me BlackWarGreymon! It's about time you all knew a little secret... Digimon will soon wreak havoc upon this realm and reduce it to cinders!"

"Now you're wondering... 'what's a Digimon, Albert?' Well I'll tell you..."

As Green broadcast his crazy message around the world; Dezzy stood on an adjacent rooftop, watching with Amara. Dezzy raised her eyebrow at him.

"What the fuck is that idiot doing?" she asked, more to herself then Amara. Amara shrugged.

"Who cares?" she replied.

"Aww, you're still depressed..." said Desiree, with fake emotion. "Well here comes your little Lee now... this should be interesting..."

i Lee, you can do it... /i thought Amara.

Lee parked his car on the side of the road. The four of them leapt out and saw Green chatting into the camera above the city, still holding Mayor Trainer in his other arm.

"Dad!!!" yelled Lee, although he was too far away for Green or his dad to hear him.

"That's Green?!" exclaimed Tori. "Aw man, they used the same Digimon transformation technique they allowed us to use on other people! So we were their scapegoats..."

"I've seen that Digimon before!" shouted Ace. "I fought a BlackWarGreymon when we were Server hopping last year! That guy is nigh-invincible!"

"Oh yeah?" asked Lee. "Well he's got my dad, so let's nigh-kick his ass."

Nathan and Ace agreed, pulling out their D-Volvers. Lee nodded and ran in Green's direction, the other three following him.

i I'm coming dad... just hang on a little bit longer... /i 

- - -

"Holy... what is that?" asked Coach Wilson, looking at the TV set showing the broadcast of Green's announcement. Rathjen grinned as other teachers and students gathered around, including Jeska.

i So the secret is out... /i she thought, disdainfully. i That's freaking wonderful. /i 

- - -

- - -

"... and when that is accomplished, you will all fall!!! Your precious military is useless against us, so don't even try! Now that you're all clued in, I'll start by making a sacrifice!"

Green turned the camera so that everyone could see Mayor Trainer. He screamed and begged for help.

"My hated rival will now be thrust into the depths of this dismal town! Then I'll level the whole country!!!"

Green chucked the camera aside and flew up into the air, whipping Trainer downwards! Lee's father screamed, figuring his campaign... and life were over!

But Lee wasn't about to let that happen.

Chaosmon teleported to where Trainer was and grabbed him in his cloaked arms, then teleported away again. Green gasped and glared, scanning the area.

"Lee!!!" yelled Green. "Where are you?!"

"AERIAL INFERNO!!!" bellowed a voice from above.

"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!" yelled another.

Green turned and was blasted by missiles and fire, exploding on him and hurtling him downwards through the air! He made use of his new body and spread his arms, stopping his fall. He looked up at the menacing Gigadramon and MetalDragonmon who assaulted him.

"A date with dragons? Whatever brought this on? I was just trying to get Lee's attention."

"Well you got it. And you picked a bad day to mess with me," he heard Lee reply. Green glanced over on top of the television station where Lee, Nathan, Tori, Ace, and Chaosmon with Lee's father just appeared overhead and set down.

"Lee! What are you doing here?! It's dangerous!" yelled his father. Then he noticed Chaosmon. "Ah! A monster!"

"Calm down, dad," Lee told him. "It's more dangerous for you than me. I'll explain everything after we take care of Green."

"How can Green be a monster?" asked his father.

"I said I'll explain it all after..."

"Beautiful, you've all gathered together so you can die together!" yelled Green. "TERRA DESTROYER!!!"

He hurled the large energy ball down at them, but Chaosmon teleported in front of it and made a fist.

"CHAOS FLARE!!!" he screamed, hoping to counter Green's attack. Instead, the demons fireball simply fizzled out and he was smashed by Green's Terra Destroyer! Chaosmon was flung back and smashed through a window of the TV station.

"Oh great, he's an Ultimate, isn't he?" gasped Nathan, just now realizing it. "And even worse, he's supped up by Shadow data! Lee, what are we going to do?!"

"The same thing we always do. Win," answered Lee, keeping his focus on the battle.

"Someone want to tell Lee he needs to refine his strategy a little?" whispered Tori into Ace's ear. Ace just shrugged.

"DRAGON STRANGLE!!!" yelled Gigadramon, wrapping his tail around Green. Green growled and struggled to get free of his grip. "Now, MetalDragonmon! Finish him off!"

"ARIAL INFE-- hey, I can't get a clear shot!"

MetalDragonmon stopped when Green forced his way out of Gigadramon's grip! He grabbed the grey dragon by the tail and began to spin around as fast as he could! He released Gigadramon right in MetalDragonmon's direction.

"Oh shit," cursed MetalDragonmon, aware of what was going to happen next. The two collided, and were both sent crashing down onto the street! Lots of people who had gathered to watch the spectacle went fleeing in terror.

"So much for your useless Perfects! Desiree was not kidding when she promised us all power unimaginable!" yelled Green, triumphantly. "But this is not a true test of my power! Lee, bring out your Ultimate or all five of you will suffer!!!"

Lee, Nathan, Tori and Ace all glared at Green, while Mayor Trainer was trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

"He's kidding, right? He actually wants to fight Machinedramon?" asked Ace. "I say waste this lunatic!"

"He's no lunatic, he's one of the four scientists and therefore should not be trusted," Tori countered. "But Machinedramon seems to be our best hope right now..."

"... even if he's pumped full of Shadow steroids?" inquired Nathan, rather skeptical about the idea. "I say we run for it."

"I'm not running, I'll face this con artist and bring him down. It's the first step to saving Ali," said Lee, extremely confident in himself. "Gigadramon! Prepare to evolve!!!"

- - -

Amara and Desiree watched as Gigadramon began to evolve into Machinedramon. Desiree smiled confidently, while Amara simply stared in awe.

"Lee is so confident when he fights... it's... hot..." she said, not taking her eyes off him. Dezzy looked at her oddly.

"Maybe so, but even Machinedramon won't be able to take BlackWarGreymon, girlie..." she told Amara. "How can you STILL care about him after what he did to you?"

"I... I just do is all," replied Amara, looking down shamefully. "My allegiance still lays with you, don't worry..."

i That's where I'm not so sure, Amara... you're lucky I can't extend any more Shadow data to control your mind... I'll have to find other ways to turn you against Lee... /i she thought to herself. Then both girls turned their attention back to the evolution.

- - -

"Gigadramon Shinka... MACHINEDRAMON!!!"

The mechanical Ultimate filled up the street with his form, flexing his mechanical joints as he glared at Green, who floated a couple dozen meters away from his head. Green grinned, satisfied to finally meet an Ultimate Digimon.

"Machinedramon... can he really win...?" asked Nathan, unsure.

"Of course he can do it!" shouted Ace back. "Right Lee?"

Nathan, Tori and Ace all looked at Lee to see what his answer would be. But Lee stayed silent for a moment.

"Ace... I really don't know..."

Ace was surprised, but looked back as BlackWarGreymon/Green began to talk and gloat again.

"Once I kill you, the strongest link will be gone! And then no Hikari Chosen on this Server will be able to stop me! Ahahahaha!!!"

TO BE CONTINUED


	19. Shining Evolution!

"Gigadramon Shinka... MACHINEDRAMON!!!"

The mechanical Ultimate filled up the street with his form, flexing his mechanical joints as he glared at Green, who floated a couple dozen meters away from his head. Green grinned, satisfied to finally meet an Ultimate Digimon.

"Machinedramon... can he really win...?" asked Nathan, unsure.

"Of course he can do it!" shouted Ace back. "Right Lee?"

Nathan, Tori and Ace all looked at Lee to see what his answer would be. But Lee stayed silent for a moment.

"Ace... I really don't know..."

Ace was surprised, but looked back as BlackWarGreymon/Green began to talk and gloat again.

"Once I kill you, the strongest link will be gone! And then no Hikari Chosen on this Server will be able to stop me! Ahahaha!!!"

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Eighteen: Shining Evolution! /u /b 

The bright December sky was fairly inviting to the common citizen. It was often cloudy this time of year, but now everything was bright. In fact, you could look up to the sky and not have a care in the world...

That is, if you didn't see the hulking form of Machinedramon blocking the way of the sun. Machinedramon faced off against a Shadow-infested Albert Green, who was in the form of Ultimate Digimon; BlackWarGreymon.

Desiree and Amara watched from the top of a low building offside the battle, while Lee, Ace, Nathan, Tori and Mayor Trainer were standing atop a TV station just in front of the combatants. Hundreds of other people were watching on their TV sets, thanks to news helicopters circling the area.

"Amanda, I won't let you down!!!" screamed Green, letting out a snarl of rage.

"Who the heck is Amanda?" gasped Ace.

"Rrrargh! BLACK TORNADO!!!"

Green began to spin rapidly and shot himself at Machinedramon, claws first! He smashed into the machine Digimon's chest, knocking him backwards a bit. Machinedramon used his back foot to brace himself a began to spin the claw on his left arm.

"DRAGON FIRE!!!"

Machinedramon bashed Green upwards and leaned forward a bit, charging his cannons. With Green in perfect range, he let loose a massive burst of energy.

"GIGA CANNON!!!"

Green was hit directly by the attack and was pressed far up into the air, past the view of the Chosen. They heard a faint scream of 'Terra Destroyer' come from above, and a red ball of energy shot down between both shots coming from Machinedramon's cannons! Machinedramon was hit in the head, and flung backwards, crashing down on his ass in the middle of the street! People had evacuated the area by now, which was a good thing.

"These two are going to cause major damages to the city!" exclaimed Lee's father. "Lee, can't you stop this?"

"There's no stopping it now. Green is going insane, thanks to the Shadow data," Tori told him. "Think of it as a drug that makes everything and everyone your enemy."

"He's not insane," corrected Lee. All the others looked at him, confused. "He knows what he's doing. He's fighting for his wife: Amanda."

"But why?" asked Ace.

"Amanda Green has cancer..." said Lee's father, gasping.

"Perhaps he thinks getting to Trinity Server could cure her," guessed Nathan.

"GIGA CANNON!!!" yelled Machinedramon, firing at Green again. Green detached a shield from his back and used it to deflect Machinedramon's attack! He then began to soar downwards at his fallen Ultimate foe!

"Machinedramon, move!" screamed Lee. "Damn it, he's too big!"

"I've got you now!!!"

Green slashed at Machinedramon, but Machinedramon disappeared in front of his eyes, and all Green slashed was air. Green gasped and turned around to see Machinedramon standing behind him!

"GIGA CANNON!!!"

He blasted Green at point-blank range, sending him smashing down through the cement in the street and into the sewers!

"How did he do that?!" exclaimed Amara, from her vantage point.

"A little assistance from Chaosmon..." Desiree told her. She glowered at the sight. "Unlike Green, Trainer has his stupid friends to help him... I'll be right back, Amara."

Desiree became encircled in black flame and disappeared in front of Amara's eyes.

"Hey, wait--!" exclaimed Amara, but Dezzy was gone. She lowered her arm and sighed. i Where did she go...? /i 

Chaosmon hovered above Machinedramon, and MetalDragonmon was getting back up from his earlier plummet to the pavement. Ace and Nathan cheered.

"Yeah! With the three of us, Green can't win!" shouted Ace. "He's Digi-toast!"

"Just like your nads earlier," joked Nathan. Ace fell over.

"Hey, that's not funny Nathan! I might never be able to have kids now! You should've done that to Lee instead about a week ago."

Lee sweat-dropped.

"Shut up Ace..."

Green came bursting out of another area in the pavement, extremely pissed! Her roared as he hovered up to Machinedramon's head level again.

"You think your cheap tricks will work again?! I can take you ALL!!!"

"Then bring it!" shouted MetalDragonmon, circling Machinedramon's body.

"TERRA DEST--"

"WAIT!!!" yelled Desiree.

The Shadow-infested girl with raspberry colored hair materialized in between the two combatants, staying afloat in the air with two demonic Shadow wings that sprouted from her back. Green and the Hikari Digimon immediately stopped in action and stared at her.

"Whoa, it's Desiree..." gasped Nathan.

- - -

"-- and now a strange girl in black seems to have materialized in between the monsters, and they've all stopped fighting. How this girl can fly and how she can control the monsters is a mystery to me, but--"

"Oh man, Desiree is there?" asked James, watching it on TV from Willington Manor, where he was visiting his parents. "Hieshi, come look at this!!!"

Hieshi walked through the doorway into the living room, grimacing at his brother's voice.

"James, what makes you think I would even care what you have to say?"

"Because Desiree and Lee are on TV... our secret is out!" exclaimed James. "Now people are all going to know about us!"

"Know about YOU, you mean. I have no partner anymore. I no longer care about Lee, Desiree, or any of the others..."

Hieshi turned and left, and James sighed.

"Why won't my brother quit being so pessimistic...? I probably should go help Lee, but then they'd know about me for sure... I'm sorry Lee..."

- - -

"What do you want, Desiree?" asked Green. "Can't you see I'm busy wasting me some Hikari Chosen?"

"That's where you're wrong, Green," Desiree countered, smugly. "You won't last five more minutes against these three..."

"So why are you here?"

Desiree turned and faced Lee and the others, who were still standing atop the TV station and watching in shock. They all cringed backwards as she set her glare upon them.

"I give you two options... one: MetalDragonmon and Chaosmon can continue to back up Machinedramon... and I will join Green in this fight. Or two: they both return to Child form and join you back on the rooftop. It's your choice, really."

"Keep fighting!" shouted Ace.

"Are you nuts?!" exclaimed Nathan. "Desiree could waste all three of them by herself! She's really only giving us one choice: to surrender our partners."

"Do it," Lee told them. "I don't need your help."

"Why are you so serious all of a sudden?" asked Ace, confused.

"If I can't even beat a tool like Green, I'll never be able to save Ali. So stay out of this until I say so!" he hissed. Nathan, Ace and Tori cringed.

"Again with the Ali thing..." sighed Ace. "Fine. MetalDragonmon, withdraw!"

"You too, Chaosmon!"

The two of them reluctantly returned to the TV station rooftop and returned to their Child stages of Kotemon and DemiTyrannomon. Nathan and Ace glanced at Lee as storm clouds began to overshadow Tamur.

"It's all you out there now, Lee..." Nathan told him. Lee nodded.

"Wait, Lee... what happened to Alison?" asked his dad.

"Nothing... because I'm going to save her!" shouted Lee with determination. His father seemed to understand and nodded. They all looked at Desiree, who smiled with satisfaction.

"Good luck, Lee," she said sarcastically, before disappearing to rejoin Amara. Rain began to pour down on the slightly darkened city, and BlackWarGreymon exhaled.

"Rain, a fitting setting for this confrontation," sighed Green, getting ready to fight again. "I assure you, I will save Amanda..."

"And I'll save Ali," countered Lee.

"Then may the best man win..." replied Green, eyeing Machinedramon again. "You're going down, you walking junkyard!"

"Less talk, more kicking your ass! GIGA CANNON!!!"

Green whipped out his shield again and deflected the blast up into the rainy sky. He then charged up an attack of his own, hurling it at Machinedramon!

"TERRA DESTROYER!!!"

Machinedramon was hit directly in the head, and staggered backwards. Green swirled around and launched himself at the oversized Ultimate.

"BLACK TORNADO!!!"

Machinedramon was hit in the chest again, and collapsed onto his back, to everyone's dismay. He returned to his Child state of Kokuwamon, whimpering in pain as he lay on the street, rain pattering against his metal body.

Lee glanced down in horror at his weakened partner. Was this possible? Could Machinedramon lose?

- - -

"-- and the larger monster appears to have been felled by the one who made death threats to our country earlier. All the military's weapons seem to have gone offline due to hacking and tampering with their systems. Could our only hope have just been vanquished?"

"Hacking...? Sounds like Irvine and his crew..." sighed Ray, watching the TV from his dorm room. He leapt out of his bed to scream at the TV.

"Kokuwamon... get up!"

- - -

"Kokuwamon... get up!" yelled DemiTyrannomon. "Damn it, Ace, send me back out there!"

"No!" protested Ace, shaking his head. "You're not strong enough! Even Machinedramon couldn't take that guy!"

"We have to try!" shouted Kotemon. "Nathan, evolve me now!"

"Let's not be hasty! I think Lee has a plan..."

"Lee...?" asked Tori, wondering why he was so silent. Ace, Tori, Nathan, Kotemon, DemiTyrannomon and Mayor Trainer all fixed their eyes on him.

"Weakness... it's pathetic," growled Green, landing on the street next to the fallen Kokuwamon. "I may as well finish you off now..."

Lee walked to the edge of the TV station building; his hair and clothes soaked from the heavy rain, coldly pressing against his skin. He didn't even notice as he stepped to the edge, his toes stretching over the thirty foot drop.

i I won't... I can't fail. I'd be letting Ali down... I'd be letting all the people I care about standing behind me down... and I'd be letting Kokuwamon down. How would he feel? Together we've defeated Ken, Tai and Matt, James, Seth, Phalanxmon, Desiree, Nathan, Emperor Shadow, Hieshi and Tammy... I thought this was the next link in a long line of fights that I'd win like I always have... but could this be the final fight...? /i 

i Don't think that, you moron! /i hissed a voice into his head. He knew it was Amara. He shifted his eyes to the left, catching a glimpse of her and Dezzy standing offside on another building. i You think Ali would want to be with a quitter like you?! You defeated all those people, so you can defeat Green! His power isn't even his own... how would you feel to be killed by a pretender? /i 

i Amara... but... I didn't think you even cared... /i 

i I don't. It's just sad watching you all sad. /i 

i Right, whatever you say Amara... you think there's a way I can do this? /i 

"Lee, are you spacing out...?" asked Ace, confused.

i I KNOW there's a way! Why do you think I like you? Your tenacity is admirable, and you always finish what you do! You're strong, like in karate... but also in your heart... you go to great lengths to defend your friends from psychos like Hieshi and Green. I'm... so sorry I made that projection of Hieshi killing Alison... /i 

i Thank you, Amara. I trust you. Now trust me when I do this... /i 

"What?" gasped Amara out loud, wondering what he meant. Desiree raised an eyebrow at her.

"A mental conversation...?" asked Desiree, disapprovingly. Amara didn't answer.

"Death is all that awaits you all..." growled Green, stomping through the rain in Kokuwamon's direction. The metal bug groaned weakly.

"L-Lee... help..."

"Lee! He doesn't have much time!" yelled Nathan, practically right in his ear. "DO SOMETHING!!!"

Lee spread his arms and fell forward off the building. Nathan screamed and tried to grab him, but wasn't fast enough.

"Lee! What the hell?!" screamed Nathan.

"Son, no!!!" yelled his father. He, Ace and Tori all rushed up next to Nathan, who fell to his knees.

"I was so close! I let him fall! I'm so useless!" screamed Nathan, almost in tears. Ace bit his lip and looked down at his feet sadly.

"No... look..." gasped Tori, pointing downwards.

i Lee, are you suicidal?! /i exclaimed Amara, concerned for him.

i Amara... I know what I'm doing... I told you trust me... /i he told her as he fell... he was falling faster than the rain was. It couldn't keep up. He was directly above Kokuwamon, and his D-Volver began to burst with energy, which radiated into him.

And also into Kokuwamon. It blinded Green and all he could do was squint as Lee came hurtling downwards. Suddenly, their two lights began to meld into one...

"What?!" exclaimed Green. "What is going on?!"

- - -

"That's it Lee... you can do this!" shouted Earnest, watching the TV along with everyone else as the restaurant he was working at as Lee and Kokuwamon began to meld into one. Everyone in the restaurant stared at him, but Earnest didn't care. He continued to shout encouragement.

"Don't hold back! Show him what a real Ultimate can do! We're all behind you!!!"

- - -

"Astounding..." gasped Rathjen, watching the TV at RTC along with a crowd of students and teachers.

"What's he doing?" asked Coach Wilson, worried for Lee. "He's going to kill himself!"

"No," said Jeska, really loudly, so as to gather everyone's attention. They all turned to the feisty red-head. "He's going to save ungrateful shit-heads like you from total annihilation. Before you prosecute him for being associated with monsters, think about the sacrifice he's making for you."

"That's right!" agreed Arik, also in the crowd. "While some of these monsters may be evil, people like Lee are willing to fight them for you! Don't stop believing in him!"

Anxious murmurs of approval came from the crowd following Jeska and Arik's speech. They all turned to the TV, giving Lee various shouts of good will. Rathjen scowled as he watched even Coach Wilson begin to accept Lee's new identity.

- - -

"KOKUWAMON SHINKA!!!"

Kokuwamon screamed out as he exploded with energy, becoming millions of digital particles. Lee's clothes ripped off as he fell, and he began to glow. The particles all absorbed into him, and they began to create a new form!

i Lee, I trust you... don't mess this up! /i thought Amara.

"He's becoming Milleniumon, the Digimon that killed me last time..." said an already informed Desiree. "Or wait! He's... not?!"

Lee and Kokuwamon's fusion took on a much more humanoid shape, barely bigger than BlackWarGreymon. He became encased in shining armor, silver from head to toe, except for a small socket in his helmet that revealed his eyes. Six huge angelic white wings spread from his back, contrasting to his otherwise mechanic appearance.

"He's a half angel, half robot!" exclaimed Ace.

On each of his forearms, a cannon formed, each one representing one of Machinedramon's Giga Cannons. A white cross emblem emblazoned itself on his chest and he stood upright and glared down upon Machinedramon. Dozens of holy symbols appeared all over his body, each of them shining with radiance. He spread his arms into the air, clearing the clouds away with his holy power and letting the sun shine down and the soaked city once more.

"SAINTMACHINEDRAMON!!!" he screamed finally, in a hybrid voice of Lee and Kokuwamon's. Green, the observers on the rooftop, Amara, everyone watching on TV... and even Desiree were shocked at the appearance of this new Digimon.

- - -

"What manner of Digimon is this?!" exclaimed Irvine from their base, scanning through his files while Lunn stared at the television screen. "It's not on our records! I definitely would have picked THAT for my Digimon form!"

"He's... indescribable..." gasped Lunn.

Ali and Tammy simply stood still at the other end of the room, unable to think for themselves thanks to Desiree's Shadow data. But the second SaintMachinedramon appeared, they both blinked.

"Lee...?" gasped Ali, looking at the screen. The two of them moved a bit, and then screamed in agony as the Shadow took them over again.

"Did you see that?" asked Lunn, pointing at Tammy and Ali.

"It seems this SaintMachinedramon disrupts Shadow data... luckily these two were far enough away..."

- - -

"Wow... he's beautiful," gasped Tori. "I've never seen a prettier Digimon in my life..."

"Lee broke the natural evolution chain..." said Nathan. "Whatever is invigorating him, it must be something fierce!"

"I don't see how it works... but I'm not complaining..." added Kotemon.

"That's my son? Unbelievable!" exclaimed Mayor Trainer. "Go get him, Lee!!!"

"Yeah! Kick his ass!!!" screamed Ace.

BlackWarGreymon trembled before SaintMachinedramon. He backed away, silently mouthing dozens of swear words. He could feel the Shadow data within him becoming unstable, making it harder to walk, to breathe, to even think.

"I... I don't care what form you've taken, Lee!" screamed Green. "You're still nothing to me! You less than a speck of dust! And that's pretty damn small if you ask me!"

"Green. You are the saddest man I have met in my life. You fight... you use the power of the parasites known as the Shadow... to get into a place of wonder that you have no idea about," Lee said to him. "There is no way to cure your wife there. It is an illusion placed into your mind by Desiree to make you serve her."

"You're lying!" screamed Green. "I will save her! You, and none of your little friends will get in my way! I don't have to defeat you to get into Trinity Server!!! Far from it!!!"

Green leapt upwards and flew as fast as he could until he was directly in front of Nathan, Ace, Tori and Mayor Trainer! He charged up a Terra Destroyer as fast as he could.

"Aah!" exclaimed Nathan. "Lee!!!"

"Too late, kid! TERRA DESTROYER!!!"

"SOUL TENSION!!!" yelled Lee before Green could even hurl his reddish ball.

He finally did, and blew the entire top two floors of the television station into smithereens!!! He laughed triumphantly as fire, concrete and glass flew everywhere.

"Ahahaha! There you go, Lee! Two more Hikari D-Volvers destroyed! And Tori and your father as well! How does THAT feel?!"

"I think you'd better look again," replied Lee.

Green looked as the smoke cleared, and Ace, Nathan, Kotemon, DemiTyrannomon, Tori and Mayor Trainer were all floating in the air, transparent and glowing with white energy. Green's jaw dropped. Ace and the others were fairly stunned as well.

"Whoa... what happened to us?" gasped Ace. "Did Lee do that?"

"Rrargh! BLACK TORNADO!!!"

Green shot himself right through Nathan, but he just flew through harmlessly, as if Nathan was a ghost.

"My Soul Tension attack makes all whom I want to be invulnerable to darkness, meaning you cannot harm them with the power of the Shadow," explained Lee. He waved his armored hand and set the six of them down near him on the street. He then spread his wings and flew upwards at Green!

"No! Stay away!" snarled Green. "TERRA DESTROYER!!!"

Lee smacked the attack away with his right hand and pointed both of his arms upwards in Green's direction. Both cannons locked into place, their target: Green.

"HOLY CANNON!!!"

Green was blasted by both attacks, jarring and paralyzing him. Lee was up right above him, and held his arms into the air, creating a shining sword of light in both his hands.

"No!" protested Green. "Don't!!!"

"This is your payment for being a fool! SHINING BLADE!!!"

Lee brought the sword down and made a clean slice straight through Green from his head all the way down through his body! Green screamed as his BlackWarGreymon shell exploded into Shadow data, leaving his human form in the air. He began to fall but Lee grabbed him by the back of his shirt, sparing him.

"You're... letting me live...?" gasped Green in shock. SaintMachinedramon nodded.

"You don't deserve death, you, like many others... were manipulated by Desiree. What you really need to do is go home and be with your wife, if she means that much to you."

"Yes... yes... that's what I should have done this whole time..."

"Aww, how touching," sighed Desiree, sarcastically. She absorbed the remaining Shadow particles from BlackWarGreymon's body back into her own body.

"So that's it for Green, huh?" inquired Amara.

"Perhaps..." said Desiree, not really giving her an answer. "Come Amara, let's go back to the base."

Amara nodded and Desiree walked off. Amara went to follow her.

i Good work Lee, but you have three more scientists left... /i she told him. i And they're all much more powerful... /i 

SaintMachinedramon landed on the street, dropping Green to the ground and returning to Kokuwamon and Lee. Ace, Nathan, Tori and his father ran over to give him praise and question him about SaintMachinedramon. Lee happily answered everything they had to ask.

"We've made the first step... but there's still along way to go..." Lee told them. "SaintMachinedramon may be powerful... but I still think we're in deep trouble. One new evolution won't topple this war..."

i And I'm just worried about what next 'lovely' surprise Desiree has in store for us... beating BlackWarGreymon was by no means easy... and based on what Amara said, he's going to be the weakest out of all the scientists... /i 


	20. Hunted and Helpless

-1Desiree grimaced at Lunn and Irvine as she walked back through the steel automatic doors leading to their main control room. The two of them looked up from scanning the local news broadcasts to greet her and Amara back.

"Thank you," she said, dissatisfied. "As you already know, Green failed. Where is he now?"

"Home with his wife," answered Irvine. "Surely Green's defeat means nothing to you milady. For Lunn, Rathjen and I--"

"Shut up, Irvine. If Green failed, why should I believe any of you will outperform him?" she asked, extending her hand in Lunn and Rathjen's direction. "I should just take my Shadow data back right now..."

"Wait, no!" pleaded Irvine. "You haven't even seen what we can do yet! Allow me to eliminate some of the whelps personally!"

"Right now my main concern isn't the Hikari Chosen," said Desiree, shoving Irvine aside and sitting at the computer console. She called up biographies they had on Tori, Ray, Hieshi and Jeska. Amara, Lunn and Irvine glanced at it, confused.

"That's... my old team..." gasped Amara.

"It's the terminated Yami Chosen but what about them?" inquired Irvine.

Desiree reached up at the picture of Jeska and ran her fingers along it to form an imaginary X. She turned back to Irvine and Lunn.

"I want them eliminated," she told them. "Just as a safety precaution, and because I don't like their faces."

"Lunn and I will do it immediately," Irvine replied, turning to leave.

"Wait!" shouted Desiree. She turned and faced Amara.

i Oh no... /i thought Amara, fearing what Desiree was about to say.

"Amara can have this job. Consider it a test of loyalty."

"Can't I go rob a bank instead?" stammered Amara, shaking. Desiree shook her head. Amara glanced around at the three people staring at her and sighed. "Fine... I'll do it."

"Tammy will assist you," said Desiree, snapping her fingers. Tammy came to attention and walked over next to Amara. "If you for some reason decide to go against this mission, Tammy will treat you the same way as she would them."

"Great, nothing like a assassination mission with my possessed best friend," joked Amara. She chuckled nervously and turned, leaving the room. The blonde girl followed her and the doors shut behind them.

"I certainly hope you're joking, Desiree," said Irvine, skeptically. "We need Amara for--"

"I know what we need her for, you imbecile! She won't betray us, don't worry," countered Desiree.

"And what will we do with Alison?"

"Leave her for now. I'm saving her for a special occasion..." grinned Dezzy, looking at the statuesque Alison standing at the other end of the room. i Lee may be able to defeat a tool like Green, but we'll see how he fares when he goes up against the woman he loves... /i 

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Nineteen: Hunted and Helpless /u /b 

And then there was madness. With every person in the country now aware of the existence of Digimon, there were two different factions: people who thought they were cool, and people who thought they should be wiped off the face of the planet.

Unfortunately there was more of the latter than the former.

"Hey you freak!" shouted a boy to Ray. "Why don't you go somewhere else with your stupid little toy and stop blowing up our city?"

"I... don't have one anymore... he was killed..." sighed Ray, stopping in the middle of the hallway and looking down at the floor sadly. The boy didn't seem to care though, and continued shouting insults at him.

i Damn Irvine for releasing all our names to the media... /i thought Ray, holding back his rage and continuing to walk away. Suddenly he felt a book hit him in the back of the head.

"Ow! You little sh--"

"Hold up! What's going on here, Ray?" asked Coach Wilson, coming between the two. The other boy glared at Ray, who simply turned his head the other way. Alot of people were staring at him and snickering at him.

"I was just leaving," growled Ray.

"This whole thing is driving the country nuts..." sighed Coach Wilson. "And five of my best students look like they're going to kill themselves because of it..."

Meanwhile, Tori and Ace were walking down another hallway. Ace was heading for his Law class, but Tori figured this was as good a chance as any to catch up with him. She was rather fond of Ace, and has just begun to realize that again now that the Shadow data was gone from her.

"Ace! Wait up!"

Ace stopped when heard her yell, allowing her to catch up. The brunette with blonde highlights had dressed fairly casual, wearing a white t-shirt that had a string holding it barely closed, exposing a bit of her chest. She stared at him with her brown eyes as she caught up.

"Hello," he said. "How's life as a freak?"

"Good. How's life as an uber-freak?"

"Ugh, this sucks. We got this totally cool gift and everyone is all 'go to hell!' and 'get off the football team!'" groaned Ace. "Luckily Coach Wilson still likes us."

"One out of 1700 isn't a good ratio," sighed Tori as they began walking. "I'm thinking about dropping out. Even though I don't have a partner anymore, I'm labeled a freak still the same."

"No!" protested Ace. "You have to stay!"

"Why so concerned about what I do?" asked Tori, invitingly flipping her hair. Ace tripped on his tongue for a moment and then darted his eyes around nervously.

"I... uh... there's Law class! See ya!"

Ace dashed into his classroom door, leaving Tori hanging. She sighed and clutched her book to her chest. i I guess he really does care... /i 

"Tori!" shouted Ray from the other end of the hall. "I'm going to snap! Wanna go out for lunch before I do?!"

"Sure, why not?" she answered, deciding to figure out Ace another time.

Tori walked over to her fellow griever of losing D-Volvers and the two headed for the front door... and froze in their tracks.

Tammy walked in through the glass doors, wearing her karate dojo uniform again. The blonde glanced around with her blue eyes, tightening her belt so that her top wouldn't fall off. Tori yelped and grabbed Ray by his black t-shirt, yanking the brown-topped boy behind a few lockers.

"What is that psycho doing here?!" exclaimed Tori, frightened. Ray shrugged. Then they heard Tammy speak. Her voice was normal, unlike the strange tone it had while she was possessed by the Shadow.

"Hello, Coach Wilson," they heard her say.

"Hey, she sounds normal," whispered Ray. "Maybe she escaped from the Shadow somehow."

"Tammy, where have you been? You've skipped your classes for two days now with no explanation whatsoever!"

"I'm sorry Coach, I've been... feeling depressed. Amara has disappeared and I really miss her," Tammy lied. Coach Wilson gulped and rested his hand on her shoulder.

"Amara's involved with all this crazy Digimon business, that's why she's gone," Coach Wilson told her. "I almost thought you were as well."

"Me? Nah..." replied Tammy, hiding her Yami D-Volver behind her back. "Anyway, I was looking for Ray, Tori or Jeska."

Ray and Tori glanced at each other nervously.

"She's definitely still possessed!" whispered Ray.

"Run!" shouted Tori.

"Where?!"

"Uhh... Mexico!"

The two of them turned the other way and ran down the hallway as fast as they could, making their way for the exit at the other end.

"Great, with no partners, how are we supposed to defend ourselves against HER?!" exclaimed Tori.

"We won't have to if we move to Hawaii!"

"You're kidding..."

Ray flung open the doors and ran outside into the December weather... and straight into Jeska! They were both knocked over and Jeska snarled furiously, smacking Ray across the face.

"Watch where you're going, dip face!" she hissed at him. "Unlike you, I care about how I look in public!"

"Jeska! Tammy! Very bad! I scared!" exclaimed Ray in broken sentences. The red-head raised an eyebrow at him and glanced up at Tori.

"Is he on speed?"

"No, but we'd better get speedy," replied Tori. She jutted her thumb backwards at RTC. "Tammy's in there. And Ray and I both overheard that she's looking specifically for the three of us!"

"What?!" exclaimed Jeska. "But what good are we to her?!"

Tori glanced back to see Tammy walking down the hallway slowly in their direction. She'd spotted them. Tori slammed the door shut and ran for the parking lot. Jeska yanked Ray onto his feet and the two of them dashed after her.

"Alright! Where's one of your cars!?" shouted Tori, so she knew where to run.

"I don't have a car, I left it in my old town!" answered Jeska. Jeska looked at Ray, who bit his lip.

"I don't have a car either!"

"Oh great," groaned Tori. "Now what do we do?!"

Jeska ran over to a Pepsi delivery truck that was parked in the parking lot. The three of them noticed the delivery man was just wheeling out the last crate of pop. They leapt in the trailer of the truck and slammed the door shut. Ray sighed with relief and leaned back against the door.

"Quick thinking, Jes'."

"As always," she replied. "Never doubt a woman, Ray. We ALWAYS have an idea."

"... maybe you do," muttered Tori, turning red.

The delivery man came back out of the school, fiddling with his blue cap as he walked back to the truck. He went to shut the door but noticed it was already closed.

"What the--? I must be getting sharper subconsciously... don't even notice what I do anymore..."

He walked around to the front and hopped in the drivers' seat, starting the truck and pulling out of the parking lot. Tammy stepped off the grass and onto the parking lot as she watched the blue truck drive away, and no sight of her quarry.

"Hmm..."

Tammy glared at the truck and pulled out her Yami D-Volver, summoning ArcaDemon Child next to her. The demonic Digimon looked at her, awaiting orders.

"ArcaDemon, follow that truck..."

- - -

Amara drove in a red car and stopped it next to the gates of Willington Manor. Crystalmon was in the passenger's seat, and peeked over the car door to see what she was supposed to be looking at.

i Are we going in there, Amara? /i 

"Yes, Crystalmon," answered Amara. "Use your telepathic powers to render us invisible."

i Amara, you know we don't have to do this... /i 

"We do. They'll take you away if I don't," sighed the Yami Chosen. She looked at the reflection of her face in the LCD screen of her Yami D-Volver. He hair was messy and her brown eyes showed signs of fatigue. She exhaled and put the device in her pocket. "And I'll never learn about my powers if I don't..."

i I'm not quite sure how you're telepathic, but I do know it has drawn us together for another reason than to be Irvine's tools... however for the time being, we'll play it like this. /i 

Crystalmon leapt out of the car, and Amara followed the crystallized cat. As Amara figured, they could walk right past Enrique, with Crystalmon manipulating his mind so he couldn't see them. They walked up to the front door of the mansion and opened it.

i It'll take forever to find Hieshi in this place, /i Amara told her partner. Crystalmon shook her head.

i Stop looking with your head and look with your mind. /i 

Amara nodded and the young girl focused her mind. She detected eight humans in the manor, and Hieshi was on the second floor in his bedroom. The others were his father, mother and some construction workers hired to fix the damages caused by Machinedramon and Rievermon.

i Follow me, /i projected Amara, running for the stairs. Crystalmon ran after her on all fours.

Upstairs, Hieshi was in his room, laying on his bed and playing with a rubic cube. He sighed as he finished matching up all the colors for what seemed like the twentieth time today. He chucked it at his door and it shattered into pieces.

"Just like Levelermon..." he sighed. The door opened and James poked his head in. "Go away, you pest!"

"Hieshi, seriously get out of bed," his brother told him. "Let's go play in the mini golf course."

"You go play your stupid games. I have no time for you."

"Why don't you both chill?" said a voice. "I've got a game we can all play."

"Who's there?!" exclaimed James and Hieshi at once. Something picked up James by the shirt and hurled him onto Hieshi, causing the legs on the bed to break and both of them falling down hard!

"Oh great, another home wrecker," growled Hieshi, throwing James off of him. "Show yourself, Amara!"

Amara and Crystalmon appeared in the doorway and Amara put on her best act to make Hieshi and James think she was enjoying this.

"Oh you rich boys are so amusing!" she taunted. "But one of you is useless, so I've been ordered to eliminate you."

"James IS pretty useless, I agree."

"I'm talking about YOU, Hieshi!" shouted Amara. "Crystalmon, I'm not a fan of killing, so hurry this up so I can go retch after we're done."

i Crystalmon Shinka... /i "RUBYMON!!!"

Rubymon singled out Hieshi in her glare and charged up a fireball in her hand. The ruby-haired warrior smirked as she knew Hieshi had no defense against her attack.

"BUG BLASTER!!!" yelled Keramon, blasting her in the stomach! She staggered backwards and glanced at James, who was holding his Hikari D-Volver into the air. Keramon was seated on the floor next to him.

i Why is he defending me after I've been such an ass to him?! /i thought Hieshi, not understanding James' motivation. James and Keramon looked determined to take Amara on.

"James, you really don't want to drag yourself into this..." began Amara, but James didn't twitch. "Fine, whatever. Rubymon, take them both out."

"RUBY BLAZE!!!" she yelled, launching a stream of fire at Keramon.

"No way, sister! Keramon, time to whup ass!" shouted James, his Hikari D-Volver beginning to glow.

"Keramon Shinka... KURISARIMON!!!"

"Kurisarimon Shinka... INFERMON!!!"

The fireball hit Infermon, but had no effect on his armored form. The virus spider charged up an attack of his own.

"SPIDER SHOOTER!!!" he screamed, blasting Rubymon and sending her crashing backwards through the wall! Amara growled and thrusted her D-Volver in Rubymon's direction, preparing to evolve her again.

"Hieshi, get out of here! I can't hold her off forever!" warned James. Hieshi just raised his eyebrow at his brother, looking at him with his contacts that made his eyes red.

"I will not be protected by you!" shouted Hieshi, grimacing at the thought. James sighed and grabbed his brother by his arm.

"Yes you will! Now get out of here!"

James hurled Hieshi out of his window, which was broken already from his earlier fight with Lee. Hieshi snarled as he landed on the ledge outside.

i Who does he think he is?! Oh well, I'm already outside, so I may as well make tracks... /i 

"Rubymon Shinka... SAPPHIREMON!!! SAPPHIRE SCYTHE!!!"

Sapphiremon came shooting back out of the hole in the wall and slashed Infermon with her scythe, putting him out of commission. James gasped and took a few steps back.

"Where is Hieshi?" asked Amara. Sapphiremon did a quick mind scan of the area.

"Running. And he's pretty fast," answered Sapphiremon, picking up Amara. She spread her sapphire wings and flew out the window, leaving James behind.

i I have to get Hieshi! /i thought Amara, determined to take him out. i Or I'll lose Crystalmon forever! /i 

- - -

Tori, Ray and Jeska were sitting down in the darkened trailer of the Pepsi truck, listening to the hum of its' engine as it drove down the highway. Of course, they had no clue where they were.

"So... uh, where do you think this rig is going?" inquired Ray. Jeska shrugged.

"Hopefully far far away from that psycho-bitch."

"But we have to go back there eventually..." started Ray. "We LIVE there."

"Ah, you'll get used to Mexico..." Tori told him. Ray glanced at the brunette, who was fiddling with her hair.

"We aren't going to Mexico!" shouted Ray.

Jeska rolled her eyes. "Bakas..."

Suddenly they felt the truck rumble a bit, as if something fell on it. They all gasped nervously and looked upward.

"ERASE SICKLE!!!"

A red energy blade slashed it's way through a portion of the trailer roof! The truck screeched to a halt as the driver probably freaked out upon hearing the noise of grinding metal. Tori and the others glanced up to see ArcaDemon rip a large portion of the roof clean off! Tammy was standing next to him and looking down, her shoulder-length hair flapping in the wing.

"Here's Johnny!" she shouted. Ray, Tori and Jeska all screamed. "What do we have here? Three useless Yami Chosen... no wait, you're not even Yami Chosen anymore! I've been ordered to help Amara terminate you!"

"Kiss my ass!" yelled Jeska, kicking the door of the trailer open. She, Ray and Tori leapt out, glancing around and noticing they were on the outskirts of the city. Ray saw the abandoned power plant not far from the road, where Amara and Alison fought earlier.

"There seems as good a place as any to hide!" he shouted, running in that direction. Tori and Jeska followed the short boy and made tracks as fast as they could for it.

"Hey, this is near Hieshi's place..." observed Tori, noticing Willington Manor up on the cliff above it. Jeska didn't even bother to look.

"Who cares?! Run, damn it!"

Tammy and ArcaDemon finished disposing of the truck driver and walked around to the other side of the truck. They saw their quarry run inside.

"They've trapped themselves," said a possessed Tammy, grinning. "Now to carry out Desiree's wishes..."

Ray dashed through the door and ran inside as fast as he could... and ran straight into Hieshi! Both of them staggered woozily as Jeska and Tori caught up.

"Ugh, I've got to quit running into people today..." groaned Ray.

"Idiots! Get down!" hissed Hieshi, tackling the three of them. A huge stream of water shot overhead. Ray and the others looked to see Amara and Sapphiremon walking towards them from the hallway Hieshi came from.

"What are you doing here?" asked Tori.

"Amara's chasing me! And I'm defenseless without my partner!" answered the black-haired boy. "What about you?"

"Oh we've kinda got the same problem..." gulped Tori as the front door to the power plant was smashed down inwards. Tammy and ArcaDemon Child walked over the fallen door and towards the four of them.

"Great... slashed or skewered... what a choice..." groaned Ray dejectedly as they were approached by their four oppressors. Hieshi glanced around, noticing they were standing in a four-way intersection between hallways leading to different areas of the power plant. Two were not an option since they were crowded by Amara and Tammy.

i Damn it, even if the four of us split up between the remaining hallways, they could still split up and take us! /i 

i That's right Hieshi. And I can tell where you are by reading your mind as well, /i Amara projected into his head. He snarled and backed away with the others.

And then Tammy stopped walking. Amara and Sapphiremon stopped as well and looked at her confusedly. Hieshi and the others looked at her with fright instead.

"What's wrong?" asked Amara.

"You finish them off," Tammy told her. "I'll supervise."

"What?" gasped Amara. This is EXACTLY what she did not want to do. "I-I... you do it!"

"Desiree gave the mission to you. I was to assist you. I assisted. Now finish them off. Sapphiremon can cut their throats with her scythe."

"Or you could let us go," suggested Ray.

"Ray! You're not helping!" scolded Tori, smacking him across the head.

"Fine..." sighed Amara with regret. She looked away from them so she wouldn't have to watch. "Sapphiremon, do it."

"Not if you don't want me to," Sapphiremon said, hesitant to kill them.

"Do it!" screamed Amara, squeezing her eyes shut. Sapphiremon nodded and extended her scythe, approaching them. Tammy and ArcaDemon watched.

"Don't worry! It'll only hurt for a second!"

Sapphiremon raised her scythe in the air above the four of them, but suddenly, a blinding light emerged from them! Sapphiremon was hit by an unseen force and sent flying backwards, smashing her spine on the metal wall! She gasped and collapsed to the floor.

"What the hell!?" exclaimed Tammy, her eyes widening.

The light surrounding the four of them concentrated itself into the air and turned into four smaller lights, one hovering over each of them! They all gasped as they stared at the shining force that had protected them.

"You're kidding..." gasped Jeska, snatching her light out of the sky. Sure enough, it was a Hikari D-Volver! "You're NOT kidding!!!"

"No way! I've got one too!" exclaimed Ray, excitedly.

"Same here!" shouted Tori, looking hers over. "It's so much more shiny than the Yami one!"

Hieshi seemed less than thrilled to be looking upon his Hikari D-Volver.

i A Hikari D-Volver...? I never said I wanted to be a Hikari Chosen! Could my alliance with Lee have changed my fate...? For better... or for ill...? /i 

"If we got D-Volvers then that means--" began Ray, thrusting his D-Volver forward. "Come out DemiDevimon!"

DemiDevimon emerged in front of Ray, the small bat Digimon flapping in the air excitedly.

"Hey Ray! Ya didn't think you could get rid of us forever, did ya?!"

"Tori! We'll stop these bullies!" shouted Salamon.

"The battle shall be tipped in our favor," growled Magemon, taking an offensive stance.

"Ready Hieshi?" asked Levelermon. Hieshi nodded and hurled his rubic cube Digimon into the air.

"Attack!!!"

"Salamon Shinka... KAZEMON!!! Kazemon Shinka... ZEPHYRMON!!!"

"Magemon Shinka... TAWNOSMON!!! Tawnosmon Shinka... TEFERIMON!!!"

"DemiDevimon Shinka... ICEDEVIMON!!! IceDevimon Shinka... MARINEDEVIMON!!!"

"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!! Dyactoralmon Shinka... RIEVERMON!!!"

The four perfects stood in defense of their petrified partners. Kazemon, Rievermon and Teferimon stood in the middle of the hallway intersection with MarineDevimon remaining behind to protect the Chosen, him barely fitting into the area.

Amara gasped in shock and turned to Tammy. "Uhm, tag team time! You take 'em!"

"With pleasure! ArcaDemon, rip these fools apart!"

ArcaDemon leapt forward, only to be countered by Rievermon! The two demons locked in a grapple in mid-air!

"I've... taken you before...!" grunted Rievermon, trying to force himself on ArcaDemon.

"Rievermon, be careful!" warned Hieshi. "Now you don't have the night to power you up!"

ArcaDemon ripped his arms wildly, sending Rievermon smashing through the wall! He darted downwards at the others, but was blasted in mid-air by MarineDevimon!

"DARK DELUGE!!!" yelled the humongous demon, firing dark bubbles repeatedly at ArcaDemon.

Meanwhile, Teferimon did a back flip over to where Sapphiremon was laying from her earlier spill. He reached down and touched her on the face.

"I'll take this... DIGITAL CLONE!!!" he yelled, transforming into Sapphiremon. He spread his new sapphire wings and inspected his shiny scythe. i I dare not attempt to take ArcaDemon's form again, after what happened last time. This one will have to do. /i 

"Hey, poser!" shouted Amara.

"Hey, shut up!" snapped Jeska back. "Traitor!"

MarineDevimon's repeated energy balls were beginning to lose their ability to hold ArcaDemon at bay. Teferimon flew up right behind him and raised the scythe into the air!

"SAPPHIRE SCYTHE!!!" he screamed, slamming the blade right through ArcaDemon's back! It pierced through his chest, and Teferimon could hear his ribs breaking. "Eww, that is just gross! Doesn't this guy have organs?!"

"I agree..." moaned Tori, turning green from the sight. "Zephyrmon, it's all you now!"

"PHOTON ORBS!!!" yelled Zephyrmon, blasting the impaled ArcaDemon! He stopped struggling and slumped over in mid-air, where Teferimon was holding him up by the scythe.

"Yeah! He's ko'd! Now let's try and delete him!" shouted Ray.

"I don't think so, boy!" growled the possessed Tammy, pulling out her Yami D-Volver. "ArcaDemon, show them true terror!!!"

"How come she don't act like a robot no more?" inquired Tori, confused.

"Lack of Shadow data," answered Hieshi, who was staying fairly silent throughout all this. "Desiree must be using it for something other than her minions. She still has some, but not enough to make her zombified."

"So we could trip her out?" asked Jeska. "Awesome!"

"ArcaDemon Child Shinka... ARCADEMON ADULT!!!"

ArcaDemon's lean green form shattered Teferimon's scythe as he appeared! He stretched one of his gangly arms out and grabbed Teferimon by the waist, hurling him into the floor! He moaned and returned to his original state.

"I didn't know ArcaDemon could evolve!" exclaimed Tori. "How are we supposed to beat that thing?!"

"It will be extremely hard. Last time Lee and I fought it, we got lucky," Hieshi told her. "Everyone, attack at once!"

"Fine by me," agreed Rievermon, leaping back out of the hole he was flung into earlier, rejuvenated.

"PHOTON ORBS!!!"

"DARK DELUGE!!!"

The two attacks crashed into ArcaDemon, exploding on him! Rievermon flung himself into the explosion, ready to attack!

"DARK REAPER!!!"

The sounds on Rievermon slashing could be heard as everyone looked on, unable to see through the smoke. Suddenly, the slashing noise stopped. All the Chosen tensed up.

"Did... that do it...?" asked Ray.

Suddenly Rievermon was hurled out of the smoke and crashed into MarineDevimon! The gigantic Perfect crashed down on his back, with Rievermon sprawled out on the floor next to him.

"What the--?!" exclaimed Zephyrmon. "PHOTON--"

"PRISON FIST!!!" snarled ArcaDemon, punching her and encasing her in green goo, making it hard for her to move. He hurled her aside and walked in the direction of the four newly created Yami Chosen.

"ArcaDemon, stop," commanded Tammy. The green demon responded to his partner's commands instantly, and stopped moving altogether. Tammy turned to Amara. "Now finish them."

"What?" gasped Amara. "No! I don't want to!"

"... then... the mission is compromised. I was ordered to help you, not kill them."

Hieshi and the others blinked.

"Well, enough Shadow data in her to make her stupid," gasped Jeska, her mouth hanging open. They couldn't believe it. Since Tammy had lack of free will, she wasn't sure if she had to kill them or not.

"You're serious?" asked Amara. "Let's go back to base then."

"Right. Desiree will punish you, you know."

"Whatever."

Amara and Tammy turned and exited the power plant, their partners following them. Everyone sighed with relief once ArcaDemon Adult was out of sight.

"That was too close for comfort..." groaned Tori, leaning against the wall. "Next time Desiree will either give Tammy direct orders to kill us, or give her enough free will that she'll kill us herself."

"Let's hope Lee can defeat them, you saw how his partner disrupts Shadow data..."

"Oh yeah Ray, get Lee to fight all your battles for you," grunted Jeska, disgusted at him. "You need to step up, man."

i I won't yield to Lee... I will be stronger than him... /i thought Hieshi. i Not just him, but Tammy and Desiree as well. Me being a Hikari Chosen means nothing! I'm still the same Hieshi I was before! This can't be... fate... none of us can be meant to join Lee's group! Can we...? /i 

"I'm out of here. You three do what you want, I'm not working with you anymore," Hieshi told them, picking up Levelermon and turning to leave.

"So you're just gonna ditch us again?" asked Jeska. "How rude of you."

"You'll see me again, but the next time you see me, I will have surpassed all of you in power. Until then, farewell Jeska."

Hieshi turned and walked off, leaving the other three to collect and welcome back their partners. Hieshi strolled through the parking lot, tossing Levelermon back and forth in his hands.

"What's our next move, Hieshi?" asked Levelermon.

"Well my friend, thing are too complicated right now. Let's begin where we started. Exterminating my brother!"

- - -

"Amara didn't do the job," Irvine said, turning to Desiree and shutting off the camera in her D-Volver. "Tammy could have easily finished those whelps off."

"Irvine Irvine Irvine... I'm not ready to be serious yet... I have all the time in the world to play with my little puppets... and one by one, I'll cut their strings. They won't know when, but I will. I could've killed them all a few days ago outside the warehouse."

"Then why don't you?! I want into Trinity Server!"

"Patience. Perhaps someone else will do our work for us..." Desiree told him, grinning. Irvine didn't quite know what she meant, but he reluctantly nodded in agreement.


	21. The Path of Hatred Destromon Appears

-1Amara and Tammy entered the main room of the scientists' lair to find no one was around. Irvine, Lunn and Desiree weren't there at all. Just Ali, standing in the corner and staring into space like a zombie. Amara looked Lee's girlfriend over and sighed. Her hair was hanging down past her shoulders, but it wasn't groomed well... very unlike Ali.

"Tammy... do you think any of the real Ali is left in there?"

"That is an illogical question, Amara," responded Tammy, almost as zombie like as Alison. she walked over and stood next to Ali like a statue. Brown and blonde hair, they both belonged to Desiree, body and mind now.

"I'm guessing that's a no... but I don't even see any of the old Tammy either..." sighed Amara. "Why doesn't Desiree just possess me and spare me this god damn pain and loneliness! I want to talk to someone who doesn't speak like a robot!!!"

Amara kicked a chair and it flew across the room, smashing into the central computer that Irvine usually worked on. It jump-started on and booted up. Amara knew she wasn't supposed to touch it... but no one was around.

"You guys don't tell on me," she said to Tammy and Ali, more of a joke than anything. She walked over and hunched in front of the machine, the glow of the computer screen lighting up her exhausted face.

"What's on this thing anyway? Files on each Hikari chosen... and Yami chosen... where's me?"

Amara scrolled past the names Lee Trainer, Nathan Klentz and Jeska Nekona before she came to her own name. She clicked on it and a huge file on her was brought up. A picture of her, Crystalmon with all evolutions... some evolutions she hadn't even seen yet! Plus measurements, living arrangements, looks, family, history... even a list of her friends and where she shopped!

"How the hell do they get this...? They even got my bra size..."

Amara squinted and narrowed her eyes on the bold red text that said 'history'. She thought perhaps it contained the answers she seeked. She moved her finger down the touch screen and pressed on the word, but a flashing 'enter password' sign appeared.

"What?! Enter password? Wait a second..."

Amara went back and clicked on Jeska's file. She clicked history for Jeska and there was no password involved whatsoever.

"Hmm, why is my history so secret but Jeska's isn't? Something is fishy here. Haha, she weighs more than me. Uh, yeah, keep on track..."

Amara looked back at Tammy and Ali, still unmoving. She sweat-dropped.

"If anyone asks, I'm talking to you two. Not myself."

Amara clicked Nathan's file and confirmed her suspicions that she was the only one locked. She went back into her file to attempt to crack the code. She stretched her hands out and prepared to type.

"If they're old men, their password can't be too complex. I bet I know what it is..."

She typed in 'Trinity' and was correct. she was then bombarded with a 32 page essay on her life! Her jaw dropped as she glanced at it.

"I can't read all this! Someone will catch me! I'll just take a peek... 'Subject named Amara by her adoptive parents that found her when she was just assumed to be four months old on a rainy street in Tamur--' ... what?! I'm adopted?!"

Amara narrowed her eyes and checked family. It had written on it: 'Foster mother and father. Notes: Divorced and father is abusive to Amara. Real parents: inapplicable.'

"Inapplicable!?" she exclaimed a little loudly. "What in the flying blue hell--"

The computer screen shut off suddenly and she looked up to see Lunn holding the cord which plugged it into the wall. The former Karate teacher shook his head at her.

"Amara, what are you doing?"

"Leaving," grumbled Amara, standing upright and turning for the door.

"Amara, you can't leave without permission!" shouted Lunn. "Don't you want to learn more about your past? Only Desiree can tell you."

"I'm not leaving for GOOD, Lunn. Just going to get some air."

"Amara, you're still my pupil and I still care about you... so... I'll tell the others you're resting in your chambers. Be back before midnight."

Amara looked at Lunn, who smiled... a very rare sight. She nodded in a silent 'thank you' and exited through the metal doors, heading for the elevator.

i More like going to see what the hell my good-for-nothing father knows about me... /i 

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty: The Path of Hated; Destromon Appears! /u /b 

"Here's all the money, James. Now please leave me alone!" shouted Father Flannigan, handing James a briefcase full of money from a lawsuit. James looked at the robed priest and then back at Hieshi and his father, both of whom were standing silent.

Black hair seemed to run in their family, in the males anyway. James, Hieshi and their dad all had black hair. They were all snappy dressers too, and had the arrogant attitude most rich people had.

"Thank you Father Flannigan. Hopefully our paths never cross again," said James, politely. "Merry Christmas."

"Oh I'll see you in hell you little..." muttered Father Flannigan, turning to walk back into the church. "Wait, I won't be going to hell! Just you."

"No, you will, you sick fuck," commented Hieshi from the sidewalk. "Get the hell out of my sight before I beat the crap outta you."

"Hieshi, watch your language!" scolded their dad. "I have a reputation to obtain in public, son. Beat the crap out of him later."

"He's not worth it..."

Hieshi got into the back of their limo, along with James. Their father went to drive it, since he liked driving himself more than having a chauffeur. They took off down the streets, where people were finishing putting their Christmas decorations up. It was Christmas Eve, and the Willington family would be making a flight to England to visit their family on Christmas Day.

Both Hieshi and James were dreading it. They hated England, and their family. As far as they were concerned, Christmas could fade away and the world would be a better place.

"Hey Hieshi... thanks for standing up for me back there..."

"I wasn't standing up for you, worm. I hate that sick freak because he's gay. And gay people should die."

"Don't you think that's a little extreme?"

"You should die too."

"Merry Christmas to you too."

"... quit saying that."

- - -

"Ohhh, Jingle Bells! Robin smells! Batman laid an egg! Joker lost a wheel and the Batmobile got away! Hey!" sang Ace while decorating the Christmas tree at their house. Nathan and Arik looked at him skeptically while passing him decorations.

"I don't think that's how it goes, Ace..." began Arik. Ace threw a bauble at him and hit him in the head.

"I'll sing how I want to sing," said Ace, snootily. "Nathan, give me the star."

Nathan passed him the star to put on top of the Christmas tree and Ace leaned over to put it on the tree. And fell off the ladder, into the tree, knocking the tree over and into a heap. Arik and Nathan sighed.

"Why must you do this every year...?" asked Nathan, massaging his brow. "It's... vexing."

Suddenly the doorbell rang, gathering all their attention.

"I'll get it!" shouted Ace. He tried to leap up, but he was firmly pinned under the Christmas tree.

"Uh... I'll get it," said Nathan, heading for the door while Arik helped Ace escape from the evil clutches of the Christmas tree. Nathan opened the door to see James standing there, holding some presents.

"Hey guys! I can't stay long, my brother and dad are waiting in the car," James told them, dumping the presents into Nathan's arms.

"Holy hell! These are heavy!" groaned Nathan, falling backwards. Arik and a pine-needle covered Ace walked into the main hall area.

"You mean you didn't invite Hieshi in for eggnog?" asked Ace sarcastically. "What a shame."

"Hey yeah, did you hear? He and the other Yami Chosen have Hikari D-Volvers now."

"So they have their partners back," said Arik. James nodded.

"Hieshi isn't too happy about it though. I think he liked being evil instead. I just hope he doesn't go nuts and try to kill us all."

"I wouldn't be surprised..." commented Ace. "Well, have a fun time in England, what-what."

"Yeah I wi-- hey, where are my presents?"

"Uhh..." began Ace. He picked up Arik and gestured him in James's direction. "... Arik's your present."

"You didn't get me anything, did you?"

"Bye!" shouted Ace, slamming the door in James's face and locking it. He sighed and leaned his back against the door. "Phew, that was almost... awkward."

Arik and Nathan stared at Ace in complete horror of his heartlessness. They had given him money to buy James a present with.

"We'll get him something on Boxing Day, when it's cheap! Now help me rebuild the Christmas Tree!"

"It's not a fake tree, though..." began Nathan.

"That's why god invented tape."

- - -

Amara walked down the slums of Tamur, keeping to herself as she navigated her way through the crowds on the sidewalks. Even in the less prosperous areas of Tamur, people were still scrambling to do their various Christmas errands.

The dark brunette didn't care about any of it though, as she wrapped her arms around her pink sweater in a vein attempt to keep herself warm. She watched her breath in the air as she came up to a familiar house. The garbage was laying in the front yard, and the house itself looked pretty scummy too.

i God, dad's a slob. No wonder mom left him... if that is what they really are to me. It doesn't look like he's home either, I don't see a car... /i 

Amara walked up to the door and opened it. It was unlocked, as she knew it would be. She glanced around at the small house, seeing her dad truly was not home. She walked up the stairs into her old room and saw that it was untouched. Just the way she left it before she went to RTC. She glanced at a few dolls she used to collect and smiled.

"Hmmm, at least I can change my clothes..."

Amara disrobed and began to dig through her drawers for something to wear. She found a bra she particularly liked that was diamond studded. She got a pink shirt and found a black leather jacket as well.

"Black and pink go together well on me, I'm not sure why. Makes me look tough," she said to herself, throwing the clothes on and keeping her current jeans. She looked up at a picture she had on her shelf of her and Lee in the karate championships last year and sighed.

"I guess I don't really need him... I have... uh... myself..." she sighed, unable to find a way to cheer herself up. She picked up her Yami D-Volver, one of the few left, and looked it over. "Wait, I'm not alone... I have Crystalmon with me. She's sitting back at the base right now. Maybe I'll summon her to take a walk with me..."

"Hey! Amara, you up there?!" yelled a rough voice. It was her father.

"... or maybe later," she said to herself, pocketing the D-Volver. She directed her voice at the doorway to her room. "Yes dad! I'm here!"

She heard a rush of footsteps that led up to her room. Her father poked his worried and unshaven face in the door. He sighed in relief when he laid his eyes upon his beautiful daughter.

"Oh my god, you're alive! The police have been looking for you for days!"

"That's funny, you haven't before made it clear that you cared."

"I do... you're my daughter! Sometimes I just... sometimes I can't control my anger... but I'm so sorry Amara... never disappear again..."

He moved forward to embrace her, but she backed away from him.

"Stop! I need to know something first. ... am I adopted...?"

"What?! No!"

Amara sighed and decided it would be easier just to read his mind. Instantly she got the answer she wanted.

"I am," she sighed, looking at her feet. "Then... who are my real parents...?"

"Amara... it's... it was a strange thing... your mother and I couldn't believe our eyes..."

"About what?" asked Amara, deciding it would be better just to hear him say what he was going to say instead of reading his mind.

"We had been trying to conceive a child for almost a year, but it wasn't working. We were considering adopting, but... suddenly... a baby appeared."

"I appeared?"

"From the computer. We had no idea how it happened. You just... appeared."

Amara sensed he wasn't lying... and now she was more confused than she was in the first place! How the hell does someone appear from a computer?!

- - -

"Hieshi, James, pack up and be ready to leave by tonight," their father told them, getting out of the limo and heading into the house. Both boys exited it and stared at him as he went inside.

"I really don't want to go to England."

"Neither do I," replied Hieshi. He knew this would interfere with his plans to get rid of James. Oh how he hated his brother. Hieshi knew he had to do it now. Today. Finish this once and for all before he started attempting to eliminate Desiree.

"James. As you know, I'm a Hikari Chosen now."

"Yeah... glad to have you onboard!" said James, happily.

"Don't talk like that!" snarled Hieshi, angrily pulling him upwards by the front of his tux and slamming his back into the limo. Hieshi leaned forward so his face was parallel to James, hoping his message would come clear for once. "I'll NEVER be one of you!"

"Ugh, okay. You know Hieshi, I used to be a bully like you. Lee and I got into fights all the time. I changed... so should you!"

"I'm no bully," said Hieshi, throwing James onto the neatly-cut grass of their lawn. "I only hate one person: you."

"Just me?"

"I have no contempt for the others. Except for Lee, because of his power; and Jeska, because of her attitude."

"Oh you've just got some sick thing for her."

"Shut up, worm."

"Alright, I will shut up. If you tell me... why the hell do to make you hate me so much?! What have I ever done to you?" asked James, pulling himself off the grass. Hieshi stammered for minute, so as to think about his answer. "... well?"

"You don't even remember do you? You're stupid and you suffer from memory loss. Let me remind you of our childhood..."

FLASHBACK

James and Hieshi; no more than thirteen years old, were standing in front of their father as he sat at his desk, looking at some papers. Both black-haired boys were wearing miniature tuxes and staring at their father, as if they were expecting something.

"Well now James," their father began, staring at a piece of paper with his reading glasses on. "Almost straight A's. Your report card is excellent! Keep it up my boy, and you'll be doing great things with your life!"

"Thanks dad!"

"And Hieshi. Well, let's see... huh? What's this? You're not even passing any of your classes!!!"

"I tried!" protested the young Hieshi.

"Trying isn't good enough! I pay for the best private tutors, and THIS is what I get?!" snapped their father angrily, slamming Hieshi's report card down on his desk. "You have to quit daydreaming and get with the program, son!"

"I'm just not interesting in learning all this stuff! I want to--"

"I don't care what you want to do! Why can't you be more like James?!"

i Hieshi, that wasn't my fault! /i 

i Yes it was! If you weren't around, I would've been the favorite!!! You may not remember this, but it happened after you left... /i 

"Now that James is gone, I have to talk to you about something, Hieshi," said their dad, calming down a bit and wiping his glasses off on his shirt. "Your grades and your attitude need some serious improvement. You were born into a sophisticated family and we do things differently than you may want."

"I don't care!" shouted Hieshi. "I want to do what I want!"

"That's enough! Your constant rebelliousness is not something I can put up with any longer! I'm sending you to boarding school until your grades improve to James's level!"

"What!? Boarding school?!" exclaimed Hieshi, shocked. "I don't want to go there!"

"You'll be there until you shape up!!!"

END FLASHBACK

"Dad always compared me to you! I'm my own person, I don't have to be like you! Even today, he still does!!!"

"But..."

"Shut up! You have no idea what it's like in my head!" growled Hieshi. He pulled out his Hikari D-Volver and Levelermon from his pocket. "We'll decide who's the better son right now!"

"Hieshi, I don't want to fight you!"

"Then you'll die instantly! Levelermon, let's teach my brother how far being nice is going to get him in this world!"

"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!!"

The metal dragon stood next to Hieshi, snarling and preparing for battle. James gasped and noticed that even without the Shadow data, his brother was the same person. He was not a good person. James figured that possibly defeating his brother would cause him to change.

"Fine, but I'll have you know, violence is the last bastion of the unintelligent," said James, summoning Keramon to area from his dorm room.

"Oh, you're calling me stupid now?!"

"I was not! Geez, you've got some serious issues, don't you?"

"Keramon Shinka... KURISARIMON!!! Kurisarimon Shinka... INFERMON!!!"

The spider Digimon bounded off all eight of his legs, leaping directly at Dyactoralmon's face! A cannon emerged from his mouth, and he aimed it at the metallic dragon.

"SPIDER SHOOTER!!!"

Dyactoralmon was blasted in the face and sent crashing backwards into the manor! He leaned against it and pulled himself up back onto his feet. Their father glanced out of a window on the top floor in horror.

"Not this again..."

Dyactoralmon took to the air, soaring over the courtyard! Infermon leapt up onto the roof of the manor, and became stationary, aiming his cannon at the metal dragon.

"SPIDER SHOOTER!!!" he yelled, firing multiple shots in Dyactoralmon's direction. Dyactoralmon turned as he flew, avoiding all the blasts from the virus spider. He turned and came flying back in Infermon's direction!

"Now! Go to Perfect!!!" ordered Hieshi.

"Dyactoralmon Shinka... RIEVERMON!!!"

The demon Digimon was still soaring right at Infermon, who was unprepared for the assault. He bounced upwards again, leaping over Rievermon as he attempted to attack!

"What the--?!" exclaimed Rievermon, noticing he was fighting in broad daylight. He stopped in mid-flight and turned to see Infermon land back on the roof. "I'm not at full power now..."

"I am!" retorted Infermon. "VIRUS GRENADE!!!"

Infermon launched a huge bomb from his mouth and it exploded in the air! The ensuing force from it sent Rievermon crashing backwards and landing on the roof! The demon Digimon growled and spread his wings, soaring up into the sky just in time to avoid another attack from Infermon!

Down below, Hieshi and James were listening to the fight in silence while staring at the roof, unable to see what was going on. Their father and everyone else in the house evacuated the building and headed into the limo.

"James! Hieshi! Come on!" shouted their father with concern.

"Go without us," James told him. "We're part of this."

Their father nodded silently, knowing this was something he obviously wouldn't understand. The limo pulled away, leaving James, Hieshi and their partners all alone in the huge mansion area.

"DARK REAPER!!!" yelled Rievermon, slashing Infermon and sending him flying backwards off the roof! He plummeted into the ground below and retracted his legs into his shell, signaling that he was unconscious.

"Oh crap," gasped James.

"Now Rievermon! Finish my pathetic brother off!!!" ordered Hieshi.

Rievermon stood at the top of the roof and looked down at Infermon. His shell was hard, but he figured if he dove from the top of the roof right into Infermon... it would kill him. The demon leapt into the air and began to soar down at Infermon!

"You're finished now!!!" yelled Rievermon.

"Not quite!" shouted James, thrusting out his D-Volver. "Infermon! Do... uh... something! Hurry!"

"Infermon Shinka... DIABOROMON!!!"

The newly evolved Ultimate appeared in Infermon's place and took only a split second to get used to his new form. He glanced up at Rievermon, who was still coming at him!

"CABLE CRUSHER!!!"

He smashed Rievermon with one of his stretchy arms, knocking him off-track and sending him smashing into the ground next to him! Diaboromon leapt away from the crater made by Rievermon, ready to attack him when he re-emerged.

"That'll do nicely," commented James, impressed by Infermon's quick evolution. Diaboromon was definitely a powerful Digimon and would be able to take Rievermon out with ease.

"What?!" exclaimed Hieshi, enraged by this new form. i I won't let this worm surpass me!!! /i 

Rievermon recovered quickly and leapt at Diaboromon, slashing him again!!! Diaboromon crashed through a clutter of neatly-trimmed trees and crashed into a huge swimming pool, sending water flying everywhere! Rievermon took to the air again, hovered over the pool.

Suddenly a huge red blast of energy emerged from the pool, blasting Rievermon! The demon was knocked backwards into the air, and temporarily phased! Diaboromon shot upwards at him again!

"CABLE CRUSHER!!!"

The time he smashed Rievermon across the head! Rievermon was sent spiraling onto the grass, landing right on his shoulder! He tried to get up, but his shoulder was obviously cracked and he found it too hard to move! He quit trying and just lay in the dirt, accepting his defeat.

Hieshi ran over to see Rievermon's condition while Diaboromon landed next to James. They both looked on as Hieshi attempted to get his partner up to fight again.

"Hieshi, face it! You've lost," James shouted to him. "Now let's stop this... I don't want to fight you."

"You won't win!!!"

"Why are we even fighting?! It won't change the past!"

"I can't stand to have anyone be stronger than me! I don't care if it's you, Tammy or Lee! I won't let you surpass me! It's my and Levelermon's destiny to be the strongest Chosen there are!"

"How do you know that?! It's impossible to tell what your destiny is!" shouted James, becoming frustrated with his brother's simple mindedness. "Don't you understand? Diaboromon came to existence because I was in danger and he wanted to protect me! Your relationship with your partner is only for power! That means you'll never have it!"

Diaboromon nodded in agreement and Hieshi turned his gaze away from them and looked back at his fallen partner. Rievermon appeared to be in real pain right now... even Hieshi was concerned about that.

"Rievermon... please get up... I don't want you to be taken from me again..." sighed Hieshi, putting his hand on Rievermon. "I won't be able to take that again!"

"I know Hieshi... James is wrong about us..." groaned Rievermon. "We have a silent relationship. Not all feelings have to be expressed out in the open... sometimes you just know."

"Right..." agreed Hieshi. He looked at his D-Volver, which was glowing. "Now let's show him how we can and will surpass him."

"I'm ready."

Hieshi turned back to James and Diaboromon, holding his D-Volver into the air. They both gasped in amazement when they realized he was still ready to fight.

"Family feud isn't over yet," Hieshi said. "Rievermon and I will now use the new powers of our Hikari D-Volver to vanquish you!"

"No way! You only draw on dark power! That's why I beat you!" protested James, not believing his dark-hearted brother could harness Hikari power. "You have a Hikari D-Volver but that doesn't mean you use it properly!"

"Then maybe you need a demonstration. Rievermon... show him ultimate power!!!"

Light burst from Hieshi's D-Volver and was absorbed into Rievermon. The demon Digimon began to grow and evolve... and REALLY grow! He became larger than even the mansion itself, assuming a huge robotic form!!!

"Rievermon Shinka..."

"Oh no... he's going to Ultimate as well..." gasped James, as he and Diaboromon looked on in terror. "And he is big..."

- - -

Amara walked down the streets of Tamur, wearing her new 'biker girl' ensemble. She had her hands in her jeans' pockets and was staring at the ground in deep thought, not really caring where she was going.

i This is quite disturbing... I'm... not... me. Or who I think I am... I'm something else. I remember Lee talking about different servers that held other humans, not Trinity Server. Perhaps I came from one of them... I must be human. I look the part. /i 

Amara sighed and gazed up at the sky.

i Irvine and Desiree must know. I'll have to follow them until I get the answers I seek... /i 

Her thoughts droned off as she saw a huge Digimon emerge into the sky from the country area. Her and practically everyone else in the city gazed up at it in amazement and fright. Amara's jaw dropped.

"What the hell?!" she exclaimed out loud. She did a quick mind scan and found out what the source of the disturbance was. "Hieshi."

- - -

"... DESTROMON!!!" screamed out Rievermon's new form, completing his evolution. He reveled in the power of his new Ultimate form. "Yes! Yes Hieshi! This is the power we've been looking for!!!"

"Remarkable..." gasped Hieshi, awed by the new evolution. "Now do you doubt my skills, brother?"

James just gulped and felt like he was going to wet himself. He and Diaboromon were going to have a field day with this thing. The red and gold armored mechanical menace glared down at James and his newly evolved Ultimate. He stretched out his thick arms, each with long golden claws jutting out menacingly towards them.

"Diaboromon, prepare to--"

"PREPARE TO DIE!!!" screamed Destromon. He spread his palm and slammed his enormous hand into the terra firma in front of James and Diaboromon! They were sent flying backwards as Destromon ripped his hand out of the ground, creating a fissure that speared throughout the courtyard of Willington Manor! Rocks and debris went flying everywhere as dozens of small chasms were created!

James crashed back onto a small patch of grass that was untouched by Destromon. Diaboromon leapt into the air, determined to protect his partner.

"INFERNO MISSILE!!!" he yelled, firing a missile out of his chest! It flew up and hit Destromon, knocking him back a bit and causing him to snarl in pain.

"Aha, he may be big... but he's no stronger than Diaboromon!" shouted James, coming quickly to a conclusion.

"You're sadly mistaken," Hieshi corrected his brother. "Destromon is far more powerful!!!"

"NUCLEAR BLAST!!!" screamed Destromon, unleashing a huge ray of plasma that hit Diaboromon dead-on! Diaboromon was thrown back into the ground and nearly fell into one of the chasms! Destromon hovered above him as he attempted to regain his footing.

"DIMENSION SLASH!!!"

Her brought one of his claws down on Diaboromon, and Diaboromon extended his arms to hold it off! He managed to stop the force of the claw, but Destromon applied all his force to crush the net virus! Diaboromon was able to hold the claw off, but was unable to escape! It was too big!!!

"Destromon! Crush him!" yelled Hieshi, thrusting his D-Volver to give Destromon power.

"Diaboromon! Don't let him win!" yelled James, doing the same to power up his partner.

The two brothers were locked in a standoff, neither one able to get ahead in the fight! Diaboromon looked like he was going to be crushed if something didn't happen soon! James bit his lip and sucked up his pride.

"Hieshi! Please stop this! I surrender!" shouted James, pleading to his brother for Diaboromon's safety.

"No! I want you gone! Destromon, annihilate James!!!" screamed Hieshi.

Destromon leveled his other arm at where James was standing. James's eyes widened as he stared into the face of death.

"Hieshi... don't do this...!" gasped James, stepping backwards and tripping over some torn-up terrain.

"FINAL ARMAGEDDON!!!" screamed Destromon.

"Wait a second..." gasped Hieshi, suddenly coming to a revelation and shaking his head repeatedly. "I'm being controlled! I-- DESTROMON! STOP!!!"

"What?!" exclaimed Destromon, already having launched dozens of missiles at James. James stepped backwards and screamed in agony as one missile hit him directly!!! Diaboromon broke up and deleted under Destromon's pressure.

"If Diaboromon deleted, then that means James's D-Volver was destroyed!" exclaimed Hieshi. "Desiree! Where are you?!"

Dark energy shot out like a geyser from the ground next to Hieshi, and Desiree floated upwards from it, grinning widely.

"What's wrong Hieshi? I thought you always wanted to get rid of your brother. So I gave you a little Shadow motivation."

"So you mean... I didn't really use the powers of light to make Rievermon evolve... it was your Shadow data..." he gasped in realization.

"Look over there..." she said, pointing to where Destromon's missile hit earlier. James was laying on his black, sprawled out and charred. Hieshi gasped.

"I did want to get rid of him... but not like this... not like this! I never imagined... you... bitch!!!" screamed Hieshi. He threw a punch at her, but she simply reflected him and sent him crashing against the manor.

"NUCLEAR BLAST!!!" yelled Destromon, firing at Desiree. She simply help up her Shadow-coated arm, sending the blast flying back at him. A huge explosion occurred, and Destromon collapsed backwards onto the ground. He reverted to Levelermon.

"So much for the 'mighty' Destromon," said Desiree. "That's what you get for betraying us, Hieshi. I hope you stew over this for a long time until you die..."

Desiree disappeared, right as police, ambulances, and pretty much the whole freaking army showed up at the manor. Hieshi's dad came running up with more than a dozen police officers and screamed in horror when he saw James.

"Hieshi! What the hell happened here?!"

Hieshi simply looked down sadly. His father clenched his fists and glared at him angrily.

"You and your monster did this, didn't you?! I'm sick of your inability to be responsible and be... human! And now look at your brother! I want you out of my house! Now!"

"Fine," growled Hieshi. "I wouldn't stay on a bet."

Hieshi walked over to grab Levelermon, and left the manor grounds in a hurry. James was rushed off to the hospital by one of the ambulances. Hieshi sighed as he walked down the country road heading to the city. He'd never felt an emotion like this before. He'd never felt... regret. If it wasn't for his hatred for James, Desiree wouldn't have been able to manipulate him so easily.

"I will avenge you my brother... Desiree will pay for what she did to both of us..." he sighed, talking to himself. "I know one person who will help me, and we'll get into Trinity Server... and find your partner... if it's the last thing I do."

- - -

Amara walked back into the base, and saw Desiree typing frantically on the computer. She didn't even notice Amara come in until Amara slammed the door. Tammy and Ali were still standing in the corner, and Amara took a second to wonder how the heck they went to the bathroom. She then shook the thought out of her mind and looked at Desiree.

"What's so exciting?" asked Amara, glad Desiree didn't care that Lunn let her go out.

"With the destruction of James... Trinity Server is now open! Prepare to be warped to a world unlike you've never seen, Amara!" Desiree told her. i And once you're there, a great chain of events will be set into motion. None of you, not even Irvine, have any idea what's in store... /i 


	22. For That Special Someone

-1"Well Desiree, how much longer until we're in?" asked Irvine, leaning over her shoulder as she typed on the super-computer they owned. The raspberry-haired girl pushed him away from her as she continued hacking.

"These things take time, Irvine. Remember how long it took me to get the partners here," she told him. He grimaced and looked back at Lunn. The karate master simply shrugged.

"I say give her time," said Lunn. "It will be worth. Then you'll get what you want, Irvine."

"Yes..." agreed Irvine. But a thought crossed his mind. "The Hikari Chosen aren't going to take James's demise laying down. Say they try to attack... with Lee's new form, he could wipe us out!"

"I don't think they will..." said Amara from where she was sitting at the other end of the room. She was hoping that Lee and the others would be out of this by now, and was trying to prevent Desiree from attacking them anymore.

"No, Irvine has a point. Those five boys will be completely enraged. Possibly Hieshi and the others as well," Lunn stated. "SaintMachinedramon is the only one of them who really poses a threat, though."

"No. Lee has a weakness," replied Desiree, getting up from her chair and strolling past the two scientists and Amara. Amara looked on as she knew what was coming next.

Desiree walked behind where the Shadow-infested Ali was standing, and put her arms on Ali's shoulders. She leaned in to whisper something into Ali's ear.

"Time to kill your boyfriend..." Desiree ordered her.

Ali snapped to life and turned for the exit of the laboratory, her black bodysuit shifting its' molecules to form her street clothes. The brunette exited to do her job.

"He won't fight her... so that's why you took her..." realized Irvine.

Desiree walked over to Tammy next, the blonde girl jumping to life at Desiree's command.

"Tammy, your job is to kill all the Hikari Chosen except for Lee. Once Ali kills Lee, kill her. Then kill yourself. Understand?"

"Yes, Desiree," replied Tammy, getting up to leave.

"Wait a second!" shouted Amara, moving in Tammy's way to prevent her from leaving. "Desiree, you promised me you'd free Tammy and Ali!"

"I could have Tammy kill you right now if you continue to defy me," Desiree told her. Amara opened her mouth in shock and realized what Desiree was saying was true. Tammy pushed Amara out of her way and followed Ali, her black data shifting back to her karate outfit.

"That's what I thought," said Desiree, grinning in satisfaction as she moved back to the computer. Lunn and Irvine went to watch her some more.

i If Desiree wanted to kill me, she would've done it already. What does she want with me...? /i 

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-One: For That Special Someone... /u /b 

Christmas Eve, a time to celebrate with family and friends. A time to exchange gifts and have fun. Not a time to spend in the emergency room with one of your dying friends. Lee, Earnest, Ace, Arik and Nathan paced back and forth anxiously as they waited for news on James's condition in the waiting room.

"Damnit, this is driving me nuts!" growled Ace, doing laps around the room. "Is he okay or what?!"

"Obviously he's not 'okay', Ace," said Earnest, who was sitting solemnly on a bench. "It's a matter of whether he's alive or not."

Lee was sitting next to Earnest, with his head buried in his hands, droning everyone else out. The blonde Chosen kept losing people this week, this was becoming too much for him.

"Desiree has gone too far this time..." whispered Lee to himself. "She's going to pay..."

The door to James's room opened a crack, and a white robed doctor stepped out of it, looking down at the floor. Ace, Arik and Nathan stopped pacing and looked at him, as Earnest and Lee stood up in anticipation of what he had to say.

"Well?! Is he going to live?!" shouted Ace, exasperated. The doctor let out a heaving sigh.

"He's alive. But he's in a coma... and I can't tell you when... or if he'll ever come out of it. I'm very sorry."

"Damnit!" cursed Ace, kicking a wastebasket. "James has already gone through this once! It's not fair! Right Lee?!"

"Right..." sighed Lee, sitting back down and bashing the back of his head into the wall. "Poor James..."

"He's alive at least. That's something to be thankful for," said Arik. "But not exactly the best Christmas present."

"Ugh, let's just get out of here," groaned Ace, heading for the door. "Earnest, come on, you drove."

"He's right, we can't sit here and brood about it..." agreed Earnest, heading for the door with Ace. "Come on guys, it's Christmas Eve. Let's go... do something. Or something."

"Right..." sighed Lee, heading for the door as well. "I can only wonder what's going to happen next..."

- - -

At the RTC dorms, Hieshi traversed his way back through the hundreds of numbered doors, looking for a specific room. Bouncing Levelermon up and down in his hand, he was trying to forget the traumatic events of earlier. He had to forge onward, or he'd never get anywhere.

"Hey! Isn't that one of those Digi-things?!" exclaimed a boy who saw Levelermon.

"Hey, isn't that my fist smashing your face?" asked Hieshi, warning the boy he was not to be bothered. He walked up a flight of stairs.

"That wasn't very nice..." Levelermon commented.

"I don't recall asking you."

Hieshi came up to the door he was looking for and knocked loudly on it. He heard shuffling inside, as if he was interrupting something.

"Hey Jessica! You in there?!"

"It's Jeska, you doof!" he heard her yell back. He smiled a bit, it was fun getting her worked up. She opened the door and stared at him, as if to say 'why the hell are you here?'

"Hello."

"Why the hell are you here?"

"I need... your help..." growled Hieshi, hating asking others for stuff. "My brother's D-Volver is gone... so that means Trinity Server is now open."

"And that involves me how?" she asked, opening the door fully to let him see she was wearing only a towel she'd wrapped around herself. She must have just gotten out of the shower. Hieshi was too preoccupied in his thoughts to stare, though.

"I want you to accompany me to Trinity Server. Not Tori and Ray. Just you. Those two are... pathetic. Us, we can survive there... and find my brother's partner for him."

"That's an interesting proposal, Hieshi. I'm having a shower and suddenly get invited on a date to go to another world. What if I say no?"

"Oh you'll say yes. You always wanted to see what your old friend discovered, right? He was the first to stumble upon Trinity Server and link it to our world."

"How did... you know that?" gasped Jeska. She decided it didn't matter. "Alright, but how to we get there?"

"The gate is located in the scientist's lair. Could be tricky to get to," Hieshi said.

"But not impossible," replied Jeska, shifting her molecules back into Magemon. Hieshi's eyes widened as he saw the real Jeska sitting on her bed, fully clothed and waving at him.

"I think I have a plan..." began the red-head. Hieshi and Magemon turned to her, waiting to hear what it was. "And it involves you, Magemon."

- - -

"Christmas... Christmas... Christmas..." groaned Nathan, sitting in the back of Earnest's pick-up truck. The black eyed boy leaned back and pressed his neck against the window, ignoring the cold December air. "All depressing events aside, what are you guys doing?"

"My parents want to take me up to their cabin at the ski resort..." answered Ace. "I guess I'll go, but I don't think I'll be in a holiday mood..."

"I'm just going to spend it with my dad and his girlfriend. Nothing special," added Arik. "What about you, Nathan?"

"Eh... my parents think I'm a freak and don't talk to me anymore. I'll lay on the couch and watch TV..."

"You can come with me, Nathan," Ace told him, trying to cheer me up. "Yeah, I'm sure you'd be allowed!"

"Really?"

"Uh-huh. My parents don't think you're a freak."

"Wow... thanks Ace..." gasped Nathan. "I don't think anyone has ever done something so nice for me..."

Ace grinned and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, suddenly he became alert of the weather around them. It had just begun snowing.

"It's gonna be a white Christmas..." he said, snatching a few snowflakes out of the air. "Maybe today won't be a total blowup..."

"Holy shit...!" they heard Earnest scream. The three of them snapped to attention and looked ahead of the truck to see Tammy standing in the middle of the road directly in front of them! Earnest slammed the breaks on, knocking Ace, Arik and Nathan around violently. Lee and Earnest, in front of the truck, hopped out immediately.

"Tammy?" asked Lee. "Are you insane?!"

"Wait Lee!" cautioned Earnest. "Remember she's still possessed by Desiree!"

Lee groaned and remembered that was true. In addition to losing James, Amara and Ali, he had also forgotten Tammy as well. The blonde girl allowed a coat of Shadow data to overtake her body instead of her karate uniform. Only her hair and face were untouched by the shiny black substance. They knew this made her incredibly powerful.

"Dezzy has made her into a Shadow Emissary..." gasped Nathan, peeking over the back of the truck. "Just like I used to be..."

"She can't be as strong as Desiree, but she does have that horrifying Digimon," said Arik. "Maybe she just came to say Happy Holidays."

"You only wish," said Tammy, her voice accompanied by the eerie monotone that came from being infested by the Shadow. "Lee, I've come to invite you to a date."

"With you? Well as inviting as that sounds, how about... NO!!!" he screamed.

"With Alison."

Lee's eyes widened.

"Where is she?" he asked, humorous comments aside.

"Follow me."

The blonde turned and walked off the road into a meadow area that was also a wildlife protection zone. In the winter weather, it was deserted, and snow covered the ground where grass would normally be seen. Lee was right behind her, knowing full well he was walking into a trap. He didn't care, he'd find a way to free Ali or die trying.

"Why is Lee going... he knows it's a trap!" exclaimed Ace, from the safety of the road.

"I don't know, but I'm going too. Ali's our friend as well," said Earnest, following them.

"And Tammy's hot. So I'm going," added Nathan, going along after him. Arik rolled his eyes, and he and Ace went along as well. They saw Ali standing at the other end of the park, her hair flowing in the wind. She glared at Lee as he and Tammy approached.

"Ali!" he shouted with concern. He went to run for her, but stopped as darkness began to burst around her.

Without moving, Shadow data began to consume her body in the same way it did to Tammy. Lee and the others looked on with disgust, watching their sweetest friend covered in the embodiment of evil itself.

"Ali, snap out of it!" yelled Ace. "You remember me! You like to slap me when I make perverted comments!"

"Ali, remember who we are!" pleaded Earnest.

"She can't hear you," Tammy told them. "This date is for Lee only... but you four can play with her friend..."

"A five-some? With these guys?" asked Nathan.

"Oh, you won't be cracking wise in a moment..." said Tammy, summoning ArcaDemon Child. The four of them got defensive upon seeing Tammy' demonic partner.

"Ah crap," groaned Arik.

- - -

Meanwhile, Lee watched Ali as she fixed her eyes on him. She began to speak to him, using the soft voice he was used to hearing.

"Hi Lee, how do I look?" she asked, focusing her now black eyes on him.

"You look pretty in that jumpsuit made out of pure evil!" he yelled, turning from calm to sarcastic. "Please... Ali. Don't do this."

"Why not?" she asked, her voice turning more like Tammy's. "You should suffer like I will for the rest of my life now that you've got me pregnant."

"Ali that's not you talking! It's Desiree or the Shadow or whoever! You know I love you!"

"I care not for your lies," she said, holding out her Yami D-Volver. "Now it is time to smash you! Come out Sangamon!!!"

A huge octopus Digimon appeared in the snowy meadow, about the size of Machinedramon. Octopimon's Ultimate form was definitely large and would be just as difficult to defeat.

"Ugh, with her being powered up by Shadow data, Sangamon is way too powerful!" realized Lee, taking a few steps away from her. "I never imagined I'd have to fight Ali..."

"Oh Lee, aren't you going to defend yourself?" asked Ali. "Because I'm not going to pull any punches! Sangamon just might though!!!"

Sangamon slammed a huge tentacle down next to Lee, causing a miniature tremor and sending Lee flying! He crashed down in the snow and slid through it a bit. He moaned and pulled himself up, half of his body still soaked. Ali was standing with her hands on her hips, Sangamon menacingly coiling her tentacles behind her in the air.

"Ali, please! Remember me! Remember us!"

"I have no need for you. I've always known I'd be better off without you, I was just to weak to say it!"

Sangamon slammed another tentacle down by Lee, but he scrambled out of the way in time. He rolled over and leapt to his feet, looking at her with hurt eyes through the light snowfall.

"You're not weak! And the Shadow isn't the answer! Fight Desiree!"

"Silence!!!" she commanded, and Sangamon smashed a tentacle directly down in front of Lee. He was sent flying backward from the ensuing tremor and crashed onto his back. He pushed his upper body off the ground while still laying there.

"I'm not going to fight you!!!"

"Then you'll DIE!!!" she screamed. Lee had never heard her speak like that. Even though he knew she possessed, this still hurt more than James's condition times ten. Sangamon swung another tentacle at Lee, and he was in no position to avoid it.

"Argh! Kokuwamon, help me!!!" he screamed in fear, holding out his Hikari D-Volver. The ensuing light from his froze Sangamon's attack as Kokuwamon leapt out in front of Lee.

"Lee, don't worry! We can turn her back!" Kokuwamon told him. "She has to remember who you are! You mean everything to her!"

"Well let's remind her how we fight first! Just be careful not to hurt them."

"She'll be trying to kill me, and you want ME to be careful?!" exclaimed Kokuwamon. Lee simply signaled for evolution by raising his D-Volver into the air.

- - -

Dean Rathjen walked up to the security elevator in the scientists' warehouse that was hidden behind a large stack of crate. He leaned over the panel that was next to the door.

"Voice registration required," said an electronic voice.

"Rathjen, Marty," replied Rathjen. The computer beeped in acknowledgement and the doors to the elevator slid open. He walked inside and motioned his hand out to the rest of the warehouse. Hieshi and Jeska poked their heads over the top of some crates and ran to join him in the elevator. The doors shut and it began to descend.

"Good work, Magemon," congratulated Jeska. "But Desiree is down there. What do we do if we encounter her?"

"We just run for the portal," Hieshi told her. "We won't need to fight her once we're in Trinity Server."

"Agreed," said Levelermon, in Hieshi's hand. "Even at Ultimate form I couldn't even scratch her."

"Wow, this Shadow possesses more power than I thought imaginable...' gasped Magemon, still in Rathjen's guise. "Alright, we're at the bottom floor."

The three of them walked out and Magemon led them down to the main chamber, where he knew the supercomputer was. They had to be ready for anything. Suddenly they heard voices and stopped outside the door. They peeked inside of it to see what was going on.

"Ready?" asked Desiree.

Irvine, Lunn and Amara nodded, standing behind her as she stepped away from the computer screen. The air in front of it was rippling, showing that there was an invisible portal there.

"Why aren't you coming, Desiree?" asked Amara, curiously.

"I, uh... just don't feel like it," replied Desiree. "Hurry up now, this is what you've been waiting for!"

"Finally!" shouted Irvine, running into the portal.

"Come on, Amara," said Lunn, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the portal with him. The air stopped rippling, and Desiree grinned.

"Fools," she uttered to herself, before turning and leaving the room. Once sure she was gone, Hieshi, Jeska and Magemon rushed in. Magemon turned back to his original form.

"I don't sense the portal anymore," said Magemon. "She must've closed it."

"Well this computer must open it..." began Jeska, sitting down at the chair and beginning to attempt opening the portal. Hieshi and Magemon watched her vain attempts.

"This is taking too long..." growled Hieshi. "If Desiree comes back and catches us, we're dead! I have an idea... you go hide!"

"Where are you going?" asked Jeska, watching as Hieshi turned to leave the lair.

"I think I know who will help us..."

- - -

"... MACHINEDRAMON!!!"

Machinedramon appeared on the battlefield next to Lee, facing off against Ali and Sangamon. Ali and Sangamon didn't seem to be afraid at all. Ali simply stood there, grinning.

"Your attempts are futile, 'lover'. Allow me to show you."

"FLOOD OF POWER!!!" bellowed Sangamon, glowing a bright blue color. Lee and Machinedramon stared on in confusion.

"What is she doing?" asked Lee.

"She's powering up! Now's the time to strike!" yelled Machinedramon. He leaned over and aimed his cannons at her. "GIGA CANNON!!"

He blasted the humongous octopus, sending her crashing back through the meadow and smashing into the side of a mountain! Dozens of boulders spawned off the ensuing crash and began to fall towards her!

"So much for Sangamon!" shouted Lee, triumphantly. "Now we can focus on Ali-- huh?"

Sangamon was not so easily defeated, as they soon discovered. She had, in fact, caught a few boulders in her monstrous tentacles! She hurled four of them at Machinedramon! Too slow to dodge, he took the hits full-frontal! He crashed down onto the ground and Lee grimaced.

"FLOOD OF POWER!!!" yelled Sangamon, beginning to power herself up again.

"Damnit! She'll keep making herself stronger!" cursed Lee. "Get up, Machinedramon!"

"I'm up. I'm up..." he groaned, righting himself. Suddenly, he was tackled by Sangamon!!! The two crashed down in a heap and began to tussle. Lee clenched his fist, and prayed for Machinedramon's safe victory.

"Now that our partners are engaged, I say we should follow suit," said Ali. Lee looked at her and she began to swirl with darkness again, sprouting two black gargoyle-esque wings from her back. She flapped them, pushing herself into the air.

"Ali.. think! I'm your friend! I'm more than your friend!"

"I have no friends!!!" she screamed, shooting forward at him. Lee stood perfectly still and took a punch straight to the face! He collapsed backwards into the snow and watched as Ali flew up into the air, preparing to swoop down on him!

"Argh... ahhh!" he screamed, rolling out of the way as she landed on the ground. He flipped backwards and jumped to his feet, only to get kicked in the stomach by his girlfriend. She grabbed him by the arm while he was winded and whipped him around violently!

"Lee!!!" screamed Machinedramon. "GIGA CANNON!!!"

Machinedramon shot at Ali, but she flew upwards and avoided it, laughing in amusement. Lee wasn't so amused.

"Machinedramon! Don't hurt her!"

"But she's going to kill y-- arggh!" grunted Machinedramon as Sangamon bashed him in the back. He turned around and began to fight with her again.

"Lee, why do you resist fighting back?" asked Ali, landing next to where he was laying.

"Because I love you!"

"Wrong answer!" she shouted, coldly. She kicked him in the ribs and he collapsed again. "Don't you see that this is the real Ali?! I'm no longer the weak fool I once was!"

"I won't believe it..." he groaned, coughing from the pain. "I'll die before I hurt you..."

"As you wish," she said, extending a long Shadow blade from the top of her right hand. She swung it around in the air a bit, before pointing it downwards at Lee. "Any last requests?"

Machinedramon was toppled by Sangamon again, this time reverting to Kokuwamon. The metal insect lay on the ground next to Lee, defeated as well.

"Lee... we couldn't do it..." moaned Kokuwamon, weakly. "They're too strong..."

"No... we can do this..." said Lee, reaching out and grabbing Kokuwamon's hand. "Have faith..."

"Say goodbye, Lee!" yelled Ali, preparing to plunge the sword into his flesh. But suddenly she was blinded by the light of evolution. She hissed and leapt away, since it hurt her in her Shadow form. "What's going on!?"

"KOKUWAMON SHINKA!!!"

Lee's clothes ripped off as he became pure energy and merged with Kokuwamon once again to form...

"SAINTMACHINEDRAMON!!!"

The angelic android stood in place of where Lee and Kokuwamon once lay. He turned to Ali, who winced at the sight of him. She began to feel weak.

"Argh! What is happening to my power?!"

"In our combined form, we disrupt all Shadow data, making you weaker," explained Kokuwamon.

"Now Ali, I will get you back!" shouted Lee.

"Not likely! Sangamon, crush them!!!" yelled the possessed Ali.

Sangamon swung a tentacle down at SaintMachinedramon, batting him across the meadow! He never left standing on two feet though, and spread his wings to slow himself down as he slid through the snow. He whipped out the two cannons on his arms and aimed them at Sangamon.

"HOLY CANNON!!!" he screamed, blasting Sangamon with the two beams of light! She collapsed to the ground after taking the hit dead-on and reverted to Octopimon. He then leapt over to Ali, who backed away in terror.

"You... you won't hurt me!" exclaimed Ali, hysterically.

"I don't need to," said Lee. "Just being near you disrupts the Shadow data."

"Argh!" she screamed, seemingly suffering from a headache. "Keep away!!!"

Lee thrust out his palms at her but, to his dismay, a force of energy only shot out and knocked her onto her back. The Shadow data did not dissolve off her body. Lee gasped as he saw her laying there, helpless and still possessed.

"B-but... that should've destroyed it! When I was near Green, he went ballistic when I started disrupting his Shadow data!"

"Lee!" shouted Earnest, running over to him. "Ali's been under the full influence of the Shadow for nearly a week now... what if she can't be restored?!"

Lee, or SaintMachinedramon, shook his head rapidly saying 'no'. He grabbed Earnest by his shoulders and began to shake him.

"She can be restored! She has to be!"

"B-but... we couldn't restore Nathan or Desiree last time we encountered the Shadow..." protested Earnest, carefully choosing his words so as not to enrage Lee even more. "Just use common sense... that girl laying in the snow... is not Ali anymore!"

"Liar!" screamed Lee, hurling Earnest a couple feet away from him. "Ali is still there! I can reach her! I just need a way!"

"You honestly believe you could restore her?"

"Yes."

"Well, Leila still has some of her Guardian powers... and she's familiar with the spiritual realm..." began Earnest. He looked back to see Ace, Nathan and Arik, their partners, and Leila battling with Tammy and ArcaDemon Adult at the other side of the park. "We have to be quick! If Tammy continues fighting them without us to help, they might be goners."

Earnest called Leila over and explained the situation to her. She nodded in agreement and walked over next to SaintMachinedramon. The merged Ultimate looked down at the kitsune Digimon.

"Give me your hand Lee," Leila told him, extending her furry one. SaintMachinedramon grabbed it with his right hand. Leila then bent over and grabbed Ali's hand with her free one. "Lee, I've only done this once... but it was successful. Do you want an explanation of what I'm about to do?"

"Yes but hurry," answered Lee. "The others can't hold off Tammy, and with each passing second, Ali falls deeper into Desiree's grip."

"I'm going to connect your two spirits using digital guardian energy that still resides in me. By transforming into spiritual forms, we will be able to connect with Ali. But there's a problem..."

"What?" asked Lee and Earnest at the same time.

"If we are so much as touched during the process... the four of us; you, Kokuwamon, Ali and myself... will die instantly."

"What?!" exclaimed Earnest. "You can't take that risk, Leila! I won't... lose you again."

"But if we don't, we'll lose Ali," countered Leila. "It's up to Lee."

"What do you think, Kokuwamon?" asked Lee to the other form residing in SaintMachinedramon's body.

"I think you'll be able to save her. I have nothing but faith in you, Lee."

"Thanks buddy. Leila, I'm willing to take that risk."

"Alright, relax yourselves..." began Leila, chanting to herself. She began to glow a pinkish color. The glow extended to Ali's body and SaintMachinedramon's as well, and they stood still as statues. Earnest clenched his fists as he watched them.

"You better know what you're doing, Lee..."

i Lee appeared in an empty black void, floating in mid-air, as if there was no gravity. He glanced around and gasped, wondering where he was. Suddenly, five doors appeared in front of him.

"What is going on...? What's with these floating doors?"

"Each one will take you to a different section of her mind, Lee," said Leila, her voice coming out of nowhere. "You must find the core of the Shadow and destroy it."

"Good luck," he heard Kokuwamon say. "It looks like we can't help you here!"

Lee nodded and headed for the door on the far left. He gulped as he grabbed the handle.

"Here's lucky door number one..." he said to himself, opening it. He stepped inside, and was on a playground. The sun was shining, and there were buildings everyone around him. It looked like normal Tamur.

"Hey, I remember this playground! I used to come here until it was torn down when I was twelve... but, why am I here?"

Lee looked over and saw a young Ali, no older than six or seven, swinging on a swing alone in the park. Her brown hair was done up in a little ponytail, and she was just looking at the ground, sadly. His eyes widened when he realized it was her.

"Ali?" he gasped. He went to take a step towards the swings, but stopped when he noticed three kids had just ran right through him! He screamed and jumped in fright. "How the hell--?! Oh hey... it's just a memory. I can't touch anything here. Hey, wait a second... I know those three kids!"

Sure enough, the three little boys were Ace, Nathan, and himself, all Ali's age as well. They ran over near the swings, throwing a Frisbee at each other. Nathan threw it in Ace's direction, but he missed catching it and it landed in the sand near where Ali was swinging. The three of them stopped and looked at her.

"Hey girl! Can you pass us that?!" shouted Ace, not feeling like going to get it. Ali nodded and hopped off the swing, picking up the Frisbee and throwing it back. Ace jumped to catch it, but missed again and Nathan caught it.

"You are a very bad catcher..." commented Nathan.

"Can I play with you too?" asked Ali, hoping she'd actually make some friends. Nathan and Ace looked completely grossed out.

"Ew! No girls allowed!" shouted Nathan, turning and running in the other direction. Ace turned and followed him. The little blonde boy, however, felt sorry for Ali and strolled idly in her direction.

"Hey, Lee! You're gonna get cooties!!!" taunted Ace. Lee didn't listen to him and sat on the swing next to the one Ali was swinging on. Ace and Nathan quickly lost interest and went to play by themselves.

Ali smiled happily and leapt onto the swing to talk to her new friend.

"Aww," began Lee, pretending to wipe a tear from his face. "I forgot that's how Ali and I met... she had just moved here and had no friends. Everyone thought she was loser... but I was nice to her."

"This memory is useless, isn't it?" asked a voice that Lee identified as Ali's. A burst of Shadow data appeared in the middle of the playground, and Shadow Ali appeared.

"Ali! Is that you?!"

"I'll delete it from her memory. She doesn't need to remember how she met you, Lee Trainer."

Shadow Ali held up her arm, and the city in the background, the park, young Ali, Lee, Nathan, Ace, and everything else all shattered into thousands of pieces. Only darkness was left behind.

"Why did you do that?!" shouted Lee, horrified. "Ali needs to remember me!"

"Darkness is her mind now!"

Lee was blasted with dark energy and sent flying backwards out the mental door. He was back in the void, and the door became engulfed in flame, disintegrating.

"What the--?! No!!!"

"Lee! There's a problem!" Leila told him.

"What is it?"

"There's four doors left. At least three out of five need to remain for Ali to keep her brain intact. If only two or less remain, her mind will be lost to the Shadow forever."

"To keep them around, you'll have to somehow convince the Shadow Ali in each room that the memory is good!" added Kokuwamon. "And if you fail, the three of us and Ali will all become Shadow servants for eternity!"

Lee gulped and headed for the second door, closing his eyes as he gripped the second handle to open it.

"I can do this... no pressure..." /i 

"PRISON FIST!!!" screamed ArcaDemon Adult. He slugged Chaosmon, sending the demonic Perfect crashing through a tree! Chaosmon groaned and struggled to stand up, but was trapped in the gooey green liquid that was paralyzing him!

"No! Chaosmon!" exclaimed Nathan. "He's out of this fight!"

"Oh this is RICH!!!" screamed Tammy, laughing maniacally. Shadow data was swirling around her, obviously a sign that Desiree was transferring more to her. "My mission to eradicate the Hikari Chosen will soon be complete!"

"Where's Earnest?" asked Arik. Nathan and Ace shrugged, and they spotted him over near SaintMachinedramon, Leila and Ali, who were all still.

"What are they doing?" gasped Ace in wonderment. Tammy had also turned to see, and raised her eyebrow at the pink glow around them.

"What indeed...?"

i Lee saw that he was back in the same park, and almost at the same time as well. He saw the young Ali and himself were still on the swings, talking. He smiled and went to go see what they were talking about.

".. and my daddy is the mayor! That means I can get free ice cream whenever I want!" young Lee finished telling her. Her eyes widened in excitement.

"Wow! That's so cool!"

Lee smiled as he watched them. "I said that to Arik too when I met him. It sure pimped up my reputation... heh..."

"What about you?" young Lee asked. Ali mumbled and began to sway back and forth in her swing. "Well? Huh? What do your parents do?"

"My dad is... dead..." sighed Ali, sadly. "He was a fireman, but one day a building didn't cooperate with him..."

"Oh..." gasped young Lee, not quite knowing what to say to that. "Well, at least you still have a mommy..."

"Yup!" replied Ali, going up and down on the swing now. Suddenly she slipped and fell off it, skimming her knee on the sand badly. She knelt over, clutching her knee and beginning to cry.

"Oh no! Are you alright?" asked young Lee, jumping off his swing and running over to the hurt brunette. Her leg was bleeding a bit, and she was sniffling more than crying, although a few tears made their way down her cheeks.

"Ow... it hurts..." she told him between sniffling. Young Lee thought to himself for a second before taking his blue shirt off and slipping it under her leg. He pulled it up over her knee and tied a knot in it, forming a makeshift bandage.

"How about now?"

Young Lee wiped her face off with his hand and she giggled a little bit.

"A bit better... hehe... you look funny without a shirt on..."

"Well thanks!"

"No, thank you..." she said, giving him a hug. Young Lee hugged her back to comfort her, although he wasn't really into hugging girls at that age. Ali was special.

"Oh my god..." gasped Lee, almost wanting to cry himself. "I completely forgot all of that..."

"Ali needs to forget it too," said Shadow Ali, appearing in the middle of the park again. "That was the moment she fell for you, and since then, you two have had a bond. A bond that is interfering with our takeover of her mind."

"It's not just a bond..." began Lee. "I'm interfering myself!!!"

Lee ran an tackled Shadow Ali to the ground and punched her in the face. She shattered to thousands of pieces and there was a huge flash of light that blinded Lee. He was back in the void of Ali's mind. The second door glowed brightly before disappearing.

"You got one!" shouted Kokuwamon with praise. "Good work!"

Lee glanced at the three remaining doors. Continuing in his pattern, he headed for the next one. He'd won once and lost once... this was still anyone's battle. /i 

"Are they forming a... mind-link...?" gasped Tammy in confusion. The blonde girl narrowed her eyes at them. "They are! They're trying to free Ali from the Shadow! ArcaDemon! Stop them!"

"No!!!" shouted Earnest.

The gangly-armed ArcaDemon Adult leapt over to where they were standing. He smashed Earnest away and moved towards the frozen Leila, SaintMachinedramon and Ali.

"TECH SABER!!!" screamed Techamon. Arik's Perfect partner gouged his sword through ArcaDemon's back, and it came out of his stomach! He whipped him backwards, sending ArcaDemon flying off the sword and across the park... away from the statuesque people and Digimon.

"Good work Techamon!" cheered Arik.

"Now go MetalDragonmon!!!" shouted Ace, signaling it was his partner's turn. MetalDragonmon flew overtop ArcaDemon Adult, getting a good sight of him from above, since he was looking into the snow anymore. He popped open his chest cannons.

"DRAGON MISSILES!!!"

The missiles hit ArcaDemon dead-on, sending him flying out of the park and crashing onto the street! Shadow Tammy growled and bit her lip.

"I'll now utilize my new level of shadow data to kill you all!!!" she screamed, thrusting her Yami D-Volver in ArcaDemon's direction. "ArcaDemon... show them your Perfect form!!!"

"Oh shit no..." gasped Ace.

i "Hey, it's our old high school!" exclaimed Lee, realizing where he was. He looked up at the grey building and smiled thinking about all the good times he had there. "But is it when we were juniors or seniors?"

He got his answer as he looked to the left, hearing the voice of an angry James.

"Hey Lee, you piece of crap!" shouted James, walking across the parking lot to confront a younger Lee and Ali, who were walking to school together. The three of them looked to be around fifteen years old, two years before they had even heard of Digimon.

"Oh god, it's James..." groaned young Lee. "Let's walk really quickly..."

"I think you owe me some money!" demanded James, folding his hand out to Lee.

"For what?"

"For making me have to exist in the same school as you!"

"James used to hate me so much then..."sighed Lee. "But we're friends now... ugh... I really hope he makes it out of that coma someday..."

"I don't owe you anything, James," growled young Lee, so as to give him a warning to leave them alone. "Come on, Ali."

James grabbed young Lee by the arm and threw him onto the pavement, to show young Lee that HE wasn't messing around either.

"Yeah, go on, Alison. Lee and I need to take care of some business," he told her.

"I'm not going anywhere!" she shouted, walking in front of him and holding her arms out so as to form a 'wall' in front of young Lee. "If you want to hurt Lee for some reason, you'll have to hurt me first!"

"Fine," said James, not really caring. He pushed her out of his way, knocking her to the ground. Lee glared at him when he did that.

"You fucking piece of shit! Don't you ever touch her!!!" screamed young Lee. He leapt off the ground, grabbing James by the front of his tux with one and arm and slugging him in the face! James collapsed backwards onto the street, unconscious.

"Lee! Alison! What is going on here?!" yelled Principal Rathjen, running from the school towards them. Young Lee and Ali gulped. They knew they were in trouble now.

"Heh, I got suspended for like a week. So did James. Ali didn't care though, she was so amazed that I would go to such a length when someone tried to hurt her..."

"I don't think she needs to know that anymore. All she needs to know is that now you are her enemy," said Shadow Ali, appearing on top of the high-school. Lee ran past where Principal Rathjen was scolding his younger self and Ali to face her.

"No, she does! I'm right here, doing the same thing! It may be more extreme, but if anyone messes with Ali... I'll make them pay. That includes you."

"You have no power here! This memory is now darkness!!!" screamed Shadow Ali, extending her arms to destroy the memory. But it didn't fade. "Wh-what?!"

"Looks like Ali doesn't want to forget what i'll do for her, making you toast!!!" yelled Lee. The Shadow Ali screamed out in agony and disintegrated.

Lee sighed with relief as he appeared back in the void. He glanced at the two remaining doors.

"I only have to save one more door... then Ali is mine again..." he said to himself, heading for the fourth door. /i 

"ArcaDemon Adult Shinka..."

The gangly Adult form of ArcaDemon was no more, and he evolved into his Perfect form! The new ArcaDemon was extremely frightening, with a face that was almost the entire size of his body, accompanied by huge fangs! Huge muscular arms and legs protruded from his pale-colored body, along with two large wings on his back.

"... ARCADEMON PERFECT!!!"

"That thing is super-freaky! Wow!" exclaimed Ace. "And I thought Arik was scary looking!"

"Hey!" shouted Arik, offended.

"Oh, while he may not be so much in the looks department, he more than makes up for it with sheer RAW POWER!!!" screamed Tammy. "Show them!!!"

"DOT MATRIX!!!" yelled the new ArcaDemon. He spread his arms and wings, and hundreds of miniature black spheres, no bigger than a jawbreaker, sprouted from invisible slits in his body and encircled him in mid-air!

"What do you think those do?" asked Arik as he, Nathan, Ace, Techamon, MetalDragonmon and Earnest looked on in confusion.

"AERIAL INFER--" began MetalDragonmon from above, preparing to unleash a pillar of fire upon ArcaDemon. ArcaDemon heard him though and turned quickly to face him, extending his arm.

"FREEZE TENTACLE!!!" snarled ArcaDemon, extending a glowing blue tentacle from his arm at light-speed! It stabbed into MetalDragonmon's side, freezing him in place! Then ArcaDemon let the hundreds of black spheres fly at MetalDragonmon!

"Please tell me those aren't explosives..." whined Ace.

They all exploded on MetalDragonmon, causing a huge chain reaction of explosives from all the different bombs! He dropped out of the sky like an anvil and smashed into the snowy grass below.

"Okay... I won't tell you," replied Nathan.

i "Now where am I?" asked Lee, adjusting to another new setting he'd been thrown into. It looked like Tamur, but the entire town was smashed. Buildings reduced to rubble, cracks in the street, and the sky was an eerie dark tint. His eyes widened when he realized it.

"Oh no... this is when Desiree and the Shadow destroyed Tamur before the server reboot! I know what this flashback is! It's--"

"And now Lee!!!" he heard a female voice yell. "I'll destroy the objects of your twisted affection!!!"

"Desiree, no! Please don't do this!!!" he heard himself plead.

Lee glanced over to see himself, roughly two years ago, standing in front of a huge chasm that had ripped open in the center of Central Park. Above it hovered Shadow Desiree, flapping her demonic wings. In one arm, she was holding Ali. In the other, she was holding a girl named Alex, who Lee was dating at the time.

"Shit, no... I don't want to watch this again..."

"You ruined my life, so now I'll ruin yours!!!" screamed Desiree, going mad. "You can't catch them both!!!"

She hurled Alex and Ali in opposite directions over the chasm! He saw his younger self run to TecKuwagamon and leap down after them.

"He won't get them both in time..." sighed Lee, walking over to the edge of the chasm. He saw himself grab Alex and fly her back up to safety. Then they leapt back down after the screaming Alison. He leapt onto TecKuwagamon's claw and just reached her hand... but then it slipped away and she plummeted to her death.

The second she hit the bottom, Lee clenched his eyes tight and looked away. That was the single most horrible thing he had ever experienced in his life. She was so close, yet he didn't save her.

"You think it's painful for you? Think of how it was for Ali," said another Shadow Ali, appearing in front of the image of Milleniumon leaping up to fight Desiree. "You haven't died before."

"Shut up..." growled Lee.

"No. You say you care about her, but yet you went for Alex first. Say there wasn't a server reboot, she'd be dead right now..."

"Shut up!!!" screamed Lee, running at her again. But she kicked him in the stomach, knocking him to the ground.

"You fail this! This in no way proves you love her at all!"

The image exploded into darkness, and Lee was rejected back into the void. He groaned, rubbing his gut from the kick and stood up. He faced the last door.

"Lee! This is very critical!" shouted Leila to him. "You've won twice and failed twice! If you don't--"

"I know, I know! We all die," he said. "But a world without Ali is not one I want to live in. I'll save her, or die trying."

"Godspeed."

Lee grabbed the handle of the fifth door, trembling in fear. He yanked back on the handle, hearing the creak of the joints as it opened. Gathering all his courage, he stepped in... /i 

"We're almost out of options!" screamed Earnest to the others. "If SaintMachinedramon or Leila are touched while their spirits aren't in their bodies, they'll die!"

"What?!" screamed Nathan. "Well un-spirit them!!!"

"I can't! They'll either free Ali or become slaves to the Shadow!" yelled Earnest. "Until one of those happens, they can't leave!"

"Oh... great..." groaned Nathan. "We're frickin' screwed here!!!"

"Yes, only one Perfect left. Then I'll go put your frozen friends over there to a quick death!" shouted Tammy. "ArcaDemon, take out the green freak!"

"Oh, you're calling ME a freak?!" exclaimed Techamon. "Look at him!"

"This is no time for jokes..." sighed Arik.

"Right! TECH SABER!!!" yelled Techamon, running at ArcaDemon Perfect. The freaky demon slugged him, sending him crashing far out of the meadow and into a building at the edge of the city. He then looked at Tammy, who smiled and walked towards Earnest.

"You won't get past me," growled Earnest, assuming a fighting stance when Tammy neared him.

"FREEZE TENTACLE!!!" screamed ArcaDemon Perfect, stabbing Earnest with it and freezing him in place like he did to MetalDragonmon. Ace, Nathan and Arik all went to run at Tammy, but he stabbed them too, freezing them all!

"Look at this!" shouted Tammy, extending her arms and spinning around in a circle. "Those three are stuck in a spiritual world, these four idiots are frozen in place, and their three Perfect partners are lain out on the ground! They're free shots! I can't lose!!!"

Tammy looked at SaintMachinedramon, Ali and Leila.

"But I'll take care of those three first..."

Tammy took another step towards them... but was suddenly blindsided by a flying Digimon and knocked to the ground! Rievermon spun in place and faced ArcaDemon Perfect, launching himself right at him!!!

"DEATH REAPER!!!"

Rievermon slashed ArcaDemon across the head, and proceeded to fly circles around him, confusing the all-powerful demon! Hieshi came running up and shook Earnest to snap him out of paralysis.

"Are you alright?" asked Hieshi. Earnest blinked in disbelief.

"You're the last person I thought would save us..."

"Yeah, well I need a favor!" Hieshi told him. Suddenly Rievermon screamed in agony as they saw dozens of small black bombs explode on him! ArcaDemon dropped him to the ground at his feet.

"It'll have to wait! If we live that long!" exclaimed Earnest. "Hurry Lee!!! Please!!!"

i Lee was brought to right in front of the house he, Nathan and Ace live in right now. He saw lots of cars lined up along the street.

"Oh no... not my birthday party..." he gasped.

He went and walked in the door, looking past all the assorted people there. He saw, in the kitchen, Ali and himself were isolated in a corner, talking.

"No no no! This is when she told me she's pregnant! Blast it all!" he screamed. He ran through all the people and ended up in the kitchen.

"You mean, 'I'm pregnant, haha, just kidding. Happy Birthday'... right?"

"No, Lee..." sighed Ali. "I really am pregnant..."

After that, Lee proceeded to say something stupid to Ali, and she slapped him across the face! She turned and ran out of the house. Nathan, Tammy and Arik came in to see what was wrong with Lee.

"I need to follow her..." gasped Lee, running through the people again and leaping right out the wall. Since this was a memory, he couldn't touch anything anyway. He saw Ali run down the street a bit until she slipped on some ice and fell to her knees. She screamed out and began crying, more out of hurt pride than pain.

"Argh! Oh my god... my life is over..." she sobbed. "Lee's going to hate me now! I... I'm going to have a child! I don't WANT a child!!!"

"Damnit... I wish I could comfort her right now..." sighed Lee, walking closer to her. The Shadow Ali from this door appeared to his right and looked at her as well.

"Yes, well you didn't exactly do anything to comfort her," said Shadow Ali. "Another proof that you don't deserve to be in her life."

"But... we're fine now!" protested Lee.

"Yes, but look how close you were to losing her again..." said Shadow Ali, pointing at the real one.

She had got off her knees and stumbled onto the grass to lay there for a moment while she collected her thoughts.

"What's that in the grass...?" she moaned to herself, picking it up to inspect it. "A broken bottle...? I could... right now... end this madness..."

"Ali, no!!!" screamed Lee in horror. "Don't do it!!!"

"She didn't do it, you baka," Shadow Ali told him. "But she could have. You made her think about it! You're nothing but horrible to her!"

Shadow Ali pushed him backwards, and he bumped into another Shadow Ali. The one from the first dream sequence that he didn't destroy.

"You don't deserve to have her!" yelled Shadow Ali #1, throwing him as well. Shadow Ali #4 caught him, the one from the last flashback.

"We do!" yelled Shadow Ali #4, punching him in the face and knocking him onto his back. Shadow Ali's #1, 4, and 5 stood above him. They all pointed their left palms at him and began to charge dark energy in them.

"The death of your soul will rid us of you forever!" yelled #5.

"Then we'll be rid of you!" added #4.

"No! I want to help Lee!!!" screamed Kokuwamon.

"We can't!" protested Leila, holding the metal bug back. "This is for him to do alone!"

"Screw that! Lee and I are like a team! We're cookies and milk! We are one right now! Remember, in SaintMachinedramon! He is me, therefore, I am him!"

"You... you're right..." gasped Leila. "Go get them!"

"That's what I like to hear!" shouted Kokuwamon, flying into the dream sequence. "MINI-ELECTRO SHOCKER!!!"

He blasted Ali #4, sending her crashing onto the grass and exploding. He landed next to Lee, who smiled in surprise.

"Kokuwamon! Thank god!"

"Let's merge now!!!"

"No!!!" screamed Ali #1. Despite her protest, Lee and Kokuwamon became the holy SaintMachinedramon!!! He turned and blasted Ali #1 at point-blank range with his arm cannon, destroying her.

"This door is ours! We'll never give up Ali to you! So Shadow... BEGONE!!!" screamed Lee and Kokuwamon as one. "SHINING SWORD!!!"

He stabbed Ali #5, making her explode instantly. Another bright flash of light appeared, leaving them... /i 

"... we're back!" exclaimed Leila, moving again as she noticed the snow and bright sky. SaintMachinedramon looked down at Ali, who lay on the ground, still covered in Shadow data.

"Lee, you know what to do..." began Kokuwamon. Lee nodded.

"SOUL TENSION!!!" screamed SaintMachinedramon, using the technique to make Ali intagnible. He lifted her body out of the shell of Shadow data, causing it to dissipate. He held Ali in his arms and looked down at her with concern.

"Lee!" screamed Earnest. SaintMachinedramon looked to see ArcaDemon Perfect advancing on Earnest and Hieshi.

"Hold onto her," said SaintMachinedramon, putting Ali in Leila's arms. He spread his wings and flew over, booting ArcaDemon Perfect away! He turned to Earnest and Hieshi. "Are you two alright?"

"We are now! I'm guessing you saved Ali!" exclaimed Earnest, excitedly.

"She hasn't woken up yet... I'm praying I did," he replied. "Hieshi, I'm surprised to see you here."

"I keep telling you people I'm just here because I need a favor! I only helped out because it's the nice thing to do," protested Hieshi, crossing his arms and looking away from them.

"We'll talk business later," said Lee. "Right now I have an ArcaDemon to squash!"

"Your Shadow disrupting powers won't work, SaintMachinedramon!!!" shouted Tammy, still laying on the ground from when Rievermon hit her. "We have just absorbed all the Shadow data that was in Ali! There's too much for you to concentrate your energy on!"

"I don't need to do that to work this guy," growled SaintMachinedramon, assuming a battle stance.

"Are you sure about that, Lee?" asked Kokuwamon, inside SaintMachinedramon.

"Nope. But I sure sound cool."

"DOT MATRIX!!!" yelled ArcaDemon Perfect, hurling the hundreds of spherical bombs at SaintMachinedramon! He spread his wings and flew up above them in an evasive maneuver! He quickly snapped his cannons into place and aimed them at ArcaDemon as he flew overhead!

"HOLY CANNON!!!"

ArcaDemon threw more bombs at the cannon shot, countering it and canceling it out. SaintMachinedramon landed on the ground behind him and extended his energy blade.

"SHINING SWORD!!!" he yelled, slicing ArcaDemon's chest open. ArcaDemon hissed with pain, but the wound soon began to regenerate. He extended tentacles from his hands and jabbed them into SaintMachinedramon.

"Yaargh!!!" screamed Lee and Kokuwamon at the same time. Suddenly... they couldn't move! "What?! We're paralyzed!"

"No! He's finished!" gasped Hieshi.

"Even the mighty SaintMachinedramon can't defeat us!!!" yelled Tammy, triumphantly. "We don't just have power... WE ARE POWER!!!"

"You're also psycho..." muttered Leila, still holding Ali. "I'd try to fight that thing, but I'd do no better than the others..."

"Lee?" groaned Ali, coming to in Leila's arms. "Lee's in... trouble...?"

"Yes Ali, but don't strain yourself over it. You're very weak right now. Everything will be fine..." Leila tried to reassure her.

"No... put me down..."

Ali wiggled out of Leila's arms and almost collapsed onto the snow due to lack of energy. The brunette reached out for Octopimon, who was laying in the snow a few feet away.

"She's delirious..." Leila noted. "She has no idea what she's doing... or does she...?"

Ali crawled over to Octopimon and coughed sickly. She fell onto her stomach in the snow and reached her hand out, touching the small purple octopus.

"Must help... Lee..."

Suddenly, a huge burst of light came from Ali and Octopimon! Tammy, ArcaDemon and SaintMachinedramon were too preoccupied to notice, but Earnest, Hieshi and Leila did!

"What's happening now!?" exclaimed Hieshi.

"She's merging!" shouted Earnest in amazement. "She's merging with Octopimon!!!"

"OCTOPIMON SHINKA!!!"

Ali's clothes ripped off as she became pure energy and twirled around extremely fast. She slammed into Octopimon, and the two formed a new humanoid warrior! The female warrior was clad in pink armor with two small gold wings coming out of the back of her helmet, which covered her eyes. She carried a gold shield on her right arm and shouted out in Ali and Octopimon's voices combined!

"CRUSADERMON!!!"

"Awesome... another merged Ultimate!" shouted Leila in awe. "Alison, Lee just saved you from eternal damnation! What are you going to do?"

"Save him from that bitch!" hissed Ali. She shot forward in her new form, faster than she'd ever felt before. "Whoa, this is hard to control!"

"Don't worry, Ali!" Octopimon reassured her. "I'm here to guide you if you need it!"

"Alright!"

Crusadermon leapt down in front of ArcaDemon perfect and whipped out her shield swifter than eye could see.

"FIST OF ATHENA!!!" she screamed, smashing the demon and knocking him backwards through the park. He growled and managed to stay on his feet, but was suitably surprised by her appearance.

"What the hell?!" exclaimed Tammy. "You've done the same thing as Lee!"

"How observant," replied Ali, shaking SaintMachinedramon until he was un-paralyzed. He groaned and looked up at the pink warrior that was holding him.

"Ali... it's you!" he exclaimed, happily. "And you've merged!"

Crusadermon nodded, but inside, Ali was grinning wider than she ever had before.

"Let's take this guy."

SaintMachinedramon spread his wings and flew up into the air, while Crusadermon levitated herself up as well. They both converged on ArcaDemon Perfect!

"ArcaDemon! Do something! Anything!" ordered Tammy.

"DOT MATRIX!!!" he screamed, surrounding himself with small explosives. He launched half at Lee and the other half at Ali.

"Incoming!!!" warned Crusadermon.

SaintMachinedramon pulled out his left arm cannon and blasted the spheres, causing them to explode in mid-air before they could touch him! Crusadermon simply held out her shield and flew right through them! She escaped unharmed, and they were both nearly on top of the unwary ArcaDemon.

"HOLY CANNON!!!" yelled SaintMachinedramon, blasting him in the face and knocking him onto his back. He looked up to see Crusadermon coming right down at him!

"SPIRAL MASQUERADE!!!"

ArcaDemon was smashed and sent flying wildly through the meadow until skidding to a stop near Tammy. He reverted to his Child form, unconscious. Tammy grunted as SaintMachinedramon and Crusadermon landed in front of her, triumphant.

"Well well, blondie," said Ali, crossing her arms. "Looks like your days are numbered."

"Now it's time to eradicate the Shadow from you!" shouted Lee, preparing to focus his energies on her.

"Perhaps another time! Farewell!"

Pillars of darkness rose up underneath both Tammy and ArcaDemon, teleporting them away. Crusadermon and SaintMachinedramon split back into Ali, Octopimon, Lee and Kokuwamon. Lee grabbed Ali and pulled her into his arms, holding her close to him.

"I thought I'd lost you again..."

"No..." she said, patting his back. "Not now. Not ever. And thanks what you did for me..."

"Ah, anytime! But I'd prefer not to take a trip into someone's mind again anytime soon."

Earnest, Hieshi, Ace, Arik, Nathan and their partners walked over to join Lee and Ali. They all faced Hieshi, whom they knew had come to see them for a reason.

"Well Hieshi, what's up?" asked Lee, still holding Ali. Hieshi cleared his throat before speaking.

"Trinity Server is open. Irvine, Lunn and Amara have already entered it. Jeska and I wish to follow them... but the problem is... we don't know how," Hieshi sighed. "We need revenge on those psychos! And I need to find James's partner! Surely you must feel the same way!"

"But... it's Christmas tomorrow..." protested Arik. "We can't go now.'

Lee knew what Hieshi said was true, though. Irvine and Lunn could cause some serious damage if they had Digimon forms like Green did. Plus, he had no idea what Irvine or his former Karate Sensei's goals were.

"I'll go with you," Lee told him.

"I knew you would," said Hieshi, grinning. "But do you know how to get into Trinity Server?"

"I, uh..." began Lee.

"I do," said Leila. "All I need is a gate to open. Earnest, feel like taking a trip?"

"I don't know about this..." began Earnest.

"Oh you don't know about anything," countered Leila. "We'll go too."

Hieshi nodded and brought Dyactoralmon out, climbing on top of him. He motioned for the others to follow. Earnest, Leila and Kokuwamon climbed on his back.

"Well guys..." began Lee, facing Ali, Ace, Nathan and Arik. "Have a fun Christmas. Tell my dad I'm safe."

"Will do," replied Ace. "And... uh... be careful, okay?"

Ali grabbed Lee and kissed him. He kissed back and then released her gently. He gave the others a wave and then went to climb on top of Dyactoralmon as well. He waved goodbye to them as Dyactoralmon began to take flight.

"Lee!" shouted Ali from below. "You'd better come back! My baby better have a father!"

"I will!" shouted Lee, nearly laughing from that comment.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" yelled Nathan with cupped hands.

"Arik! You can take my truck!" yelled Earnest. "Keep it safe!"

"Why don't I get your truck?!" exclaimed Ace.

"You can't drive!!!" protested Earnest.

"If I learn?"

"... no."

Ace fell over anime-style as Dyactoralmon turned and flew off in the direction of the pier. Hieshi, Lee and Earnest were about to head into a world filled with danger, it was unnerving them all. The three Digimon weren't as scared though, they knew their world.

"Don't worry, Lee..." Kokuwamon told him. "We can stop Irvine."

"I'm just going to miss my friends and Ali so much..." sighed Lee. "They'd better take good care of her..."

As Dyactoralmon soared over the city, one figure watched him go. He grinned as he knew who was aboard and where they were going. Rathjen turned away from the window of his office and faced Desiree, who was standing behind him.

"Well, Desiree... it happened as you predicted," said Rathjen, happily. "Irvine, Lee, Amara, Hieshi, Lunn, Earnest, and Jeska will all become food for The Great One."

"Yes..." agreed Desiree. "And now all of those other Chosen are left here, without Lee to protect them. It's going to be a very interesting Holiday Season..."


	23. Warp to Trinity

-1"Whoa..." gasped Amara. She widened her eyes as she laid eyes upon the strange new world in front of her. It looked like a vast and lush jungle, way different than any forest she'd seen back in her own server. She reached up and touched a leaf on a tree, it felt real.

i Is it that amazing to you? /i asked Crystalmon, sitting at her feet. Amara nodded as she glanced down at the crystal cat.

"It is... surely our world must have been this intimidating to you when you first saw it."

i Eh... /i 

Irvine and Lunn were equally amazed from their vantage point a few meters ahead of Amara. After taking in the scenery, they looked back at her and motioned for her to follow.

"Where's the gizmo Desiree gave you?" asked Lunn, scratching his neat gray hair. Irvine fumbled around in the pocket of his coat for it.

"Here it is," he replied, holding out what looked like a small radar. He switched it on and gazed down as a holographic red arrow appeared in the air above it. It pointed in the direction they were facing.

"Looks like we go that way," said Lunn, beginning to walk. Irvine nodded and followed him.

"Where are we going, anyway?" asked Amara, her and Crystalmon keeping up. Irvine and Lunn looked at each other.

"Uhh... somewhere," answered Irvine. "Don't worry about that, just gaze at he beauty of this new land."

"It is quite breathtaking..." added Lunn, glancing at everything as he walked.

i Amara, I don't like this. They're keeping us too far out of the loop. /i 

i I know, /i replied Amara telepathically. i But we're here, and I trust Lunn. /i 

i I don't trust that snake Irvine... I just don't... /i 

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Two: Warp to Trinity /u /b 

Dyactoralmon crashed down in front of the warehouse and the party of Hieshi, Earnest, Lee, Kokuwamon and Leila leapt off of him. He reverted to Levelermon and Hieshi snatched him up, then the six of then ran for the elevator. Magemon was waiting outside of it, yawning as he waited for them.

"Yo, Magey!" shouted Hieshi to the cloaked Digimon. "Open it up!"

"Huh? Oh, right," replied Magemon, morphing into Rathjen's form again. "Voice confirmation. Rathjen, Marty."

"Access Granted."

The door opened with a hissing noise, like one that a freezer would make when you opened it. They all ran inside and began to ride it to the bottom.

"Hurry, we gotta hurry!" shouted Hieshi. "We don't know when Desiree will get back!"

"Don't you think she would've come back by now?" asked Earnest, suspiciously. "This whole set-up seems foreign. Why would she leave their base completely unguarded."

"Earnest is right," agreed Leila. "This is most definitely a trap."

"Who cares?" asked Hieshi. "As long as I get into Trinity Server, I'm happy."

"I don't see why you care so much," argued Leila. "It's nothing special. It's to us what your world is to you."

"I'm not you," said Hieshi, as the elevator reached bottom. They dashed out and reached the main control room in no time at all. Jeska gave them a lazy wave from where she was relaxing in the captain's chair.

"Hey geeks," she greeted them.

"Hey yourself," replied Lee. "Nice to see you not possessed and trying to kill us."

"Nice to see you not having an orgasm over your missing girlfriend."

Lee went red, and Leila walked over to inspect where Jeska was sitting. Jeska glanced up at her and turned back to the computer.

"Yeah, they went in through here, but I can't figure the computer out. I hope one of you is a master hacker..."

"The gate isn't in the computer," Leila informed them. "It's right here."

She waved her arm in a circle not far from the computer screen and the air began to ripple like they had seen it do before. Jeska and Hieshi were considerably amazed at the ease with which she'd opened the portal.

"Wow... that was awesome..." gasped Magemon. "How did you do that?"

"It's called being a Guardian," she answered, stepping away from the portal.

"Remind me to become a Guardian."

"Who's going in first?" asked Leila. "I'm not sure where the portal will be taking us, probably to the coordinates they'd set."

"So there's still time to catch them?" inquired Lee. Leila nodded. Hieshi pushed past Lee and Magemon. He gasped with excitement as he put his arm into the rippling air and saw it disappear.

"Whoa! Me first!" he shouted, leaping in and disappearing. They all sighed.

"That boy is going to be the death of us..." moaned Jeska, rolling her eyes. She walked in after him.

"If he doesn't kill us himself," muttered Earnest.

"Aw, you still don't trust Hieshi? He's just not a people person, but me and him bonded when I threw him out a window."

"Lovely for you, Lee," replied Earnest with little enthusiasm. "I still don't like the idea of going to Trinity Server, especially with them, but if you and Leila are so insistent to go, then I--"

"Shut up and go," said Leila, throwing him in the portal. The clothed Renamon jumped in after him.

"Remember..." said Magemon to Lee. "Trinity Server is filled with millions of Digimon. Kokuwamon knows, and so do I. Lots focus in societies like your world, but there are mindless wild ones too. We must be careful."

"Right," agreed Lee. "Let's go!"

Magemon leapt into the portal, disappearing. Lee and Kokuwamon nodded at each other and both followed suit. After they entered the portal disappeared as easily as it had been created.

- - -

A split-second later, they all emerged from the portal in a completely different area. It was reminiscent of a desert... actually it was a desert. Sand for miles and huge wind storms blowing through the air. The Digimon looked fine, but all four Chosen had collapsed to the ground, breathing for air.

"Hieshi, what's wrong?" asked Levelermon, who Hieshi had dropped in the sand.

"Ugh... I feel like I just went through the ringer..." groaned Hieshi. "I'm gonna hurl."

"That's the transition effect," Lee told him, recalling it from before. "Urgh... isn't it lovely?"

"Quite," groaned Jeska, struggling to stand up as she clasped her stomach. "Where the crap are we?"

"Don't ask me," replied Magemon and Kokuwamon at once. "We're still young, so we haven't seen much of Trinity Server."

"I've never been here," added Levelermon as Hieshi picked him up. "I was born in Megabyte Server."

They all turned to look at Leila.

"Well, if you must ask..." began Leila, helping Earnest out of the sand. "This is Sector Omega. There are a total of five sectors: Alpha, Beta, Epsilon, Gamma, and Omega. And we'll be visiting them all."

"Anything specific about them?" asked Earnest, glancing around. "This place doesn't look like it changed at all since the days of Desolate Server."

"Well... we're on the outskirts of Sector Omega, which is near the gateway sector Epsilon. Gamma is all desert terrain while Epsilon is forest terrain. It would be preferable to traverse that sector, no?"

"Yes, yes it would," answered Earnest. "I'm guessing they all lead to one Central area?"

"You're wrong," replied Leila. "They're each on different planes, one above each other, existing in a different timeline. This one IS like the Desolate Server days, and I was afraid we'd get dumped here. It is the lowest plane of existence. There is one large city not far from here."

"And how do we go up?" inquired Hieshi.

"We simply have to use the lift at Omega City. Now let's go."

Leila turned and began walking through the sand to the east. Earnest followed her along with all the others. Jeska was glancing around with amazement as they walked.

"Wow, this is crazy... the sand even tastes real. It's like a real world... but different."

"It is a real world, Jeska," Magemon told her. "And as we don't have to eat in your world, you won't have to eat here. You'll still need sleep though. Also, in the occurrence that one of us Digimon dies, let me inform you of one thing. As we were shot back here when Desiree destroyed your D-Volvers, you will be shot back to your world. For WE stabilize YOU here."

"So it's a role-reversal..." gasped Lee. "Leila, what are the different planes like?"

"Well... this one is desert, and Epsilon is forest. Now... Epsilon is connected to Sector Gamma. Meaning you won't even notice a barrier as your cross the plane into it. But Sector Gamma is a world of ice, and very dangerous."

"And the other two?"

"Beta is a technological haven, it's where most civilized and powerful Digimon reside. But it's in the shadow of Alpha Server, where all the great castles that govern our world reside. Irvine and Lunn will most likely be heading there... so we have to beat them there!"

"Sounds doable, but we don't know if they ended up on this plane. Desiree most likely reprogrammed it to send us here," began Lee, but then he got distracted as he felt something moving under his feet. "Uhm, Kokuwamon... quit messing around down there."

"It's not me..." he heard Kokuwamon reply.

Leila froze in her step and turned around to face Lee and the others. Her eyes widened with fright.

"It's a wormhole! Run!!!" she screamed.

"What's a wormhole?!" exclaimed Hieshi.

"It's basically a warp for a Digimon to emerge out of!!! Anything could come out of that!" she screamed, bounding forward. Earnest, Jeska, Hieshi, Lee and their partners dashed after her. Jeska and Lee stopped to look back and see what came out of it.

"Don't stop!" shouted Leila.

"But--" began Jeska and Lee at once. Suddenly the blonde and the redhead were both sent flying as a huge explosion occurred underneath them! A huge Digimon formed itself in the sand, rising to his feet.

"I am Pharohmon!" yelled the Egyptian-clad Digimon that appeared before Jeska and Lee, who were laying in the sand. "You trespass on my ancestral home, therefore you all must die!"

"He's an Ultimate!" exclaimed Leila. "There's no way we can take him!"

"Speak for yourself!" growled Hieshi, pulling out his D-Volver. "Levelermon, go to Ultimate!!!"

"Levelermon Shinka... DYACTORALMON!!! Dyactoralmon Shinka... RIEVERMON!!!"

The demon Digimon stood in front of Hieshi, and Hieshi winced at the form of Rievermon in contempt.

"I said Ultimate!"

"I can't! The Shadow gave me the ability to evolve into Destromon!" argued Rievermon. "I'll have to do this as I am!"

"B-but... you can't..." gasped Hieshi.

"Maybe he can if he has a little help," said Earnest, pulling out his Hikari D-Volver. "Not everything revolves around you."

"You think you're so smart..." muttered Hieshi.

"Leila the Renamon Shinka... Leila the Kyubimon!!! Leila the Kyubimon Shinka... LEILA THE METALKYUBIMON!!!"

The metallic fox leapt down next to Rievermon, and they both faced the Egyptian Ultimate.

"Fine, then you may die together! SWARMING DEATH!!!"

Pharohmon raised his arm into the air and launched a force beam at Leila and Rievermon, who each leapt to the side to avoid it.

"Get Jeska and Lee away from him!" yelled Earnest.

Magemon ran over and picked the two unconscious Chosen up, running them away from Pharohmon. Kokuwamon bounded after them as they cleared the area. Leila landed on the right of the Ultimate Digimon.

"DUAL BLASTERS!!!" she screamed. Two cannons emerged from the shoulders of her forearms and blasted Pharohmon directly in the side! He was pushed back through the sand as he attempted to block the attack.

"Now you're mine!" yelled Rievermon, leaping upwards at him! "DEATH REAPER!!!"

Rievermon flew at Pharohmon and began to repeatedly slashing his upper body, knocking him back through the sand even further. He continued to slash, putting large dents in Pharohmon's armor!

"He's not going down!" exclaimed Hieshi as he, Earnest, Magemon and Kokuwamon watched in exasperation.

"Hah! Your pathetic attempts make me laugh, Perfect! You two cannot hope to match my power!" gloated Pharohmon. "FIST OF RULER!!!"

Pharohmon punched Rievermon with his mighty fist, bringing the demon down in one hit. Rievermon fell into the sand, unmoving. He then turned to Leila.

"Now it's your turn, Guardian," growled Pharohmon. "If the legends are true... I'll become the Guardian by destroying you!"

"There is no Guardian anymore!" Leila told him. "I have no special powers!"

"You lie to save the lives of you and these humans! But I won't fall for it! SWARMING DEATH!!!"

Leila gasped as Pharohmon launched another force beam at her. Earnest bit his lip as he watched.

"Leila, go to Ultimate now!!!" he screamed instinctively. A light form his D-Volver shot out and into her!

"Leila the MetalKyubimon Shinka..."

Leila became a biped again and gained huge amounts of armor on her body. Her entire armor was yellow except for her hands, which were black. Only her Renamon head was visible outside of her acquired bulk.

"... LEILA THE WARRENAMON!!!"

"She evolved into WarRenamon!" exclaimed Earnest. "Now she's an Ultimate too!"

i What?! /i thought Hieshi. i Even this goof is surpassing me in power! /i 

"Your new form doesn't scare me, Guardian!" shouted Pharohmon. His last Swarming Death attack hit her, but fizzled out upon touching her armor. She grinned as she looked at the misguided Ultimate.

"A mistake you will surely live to forget! PSYCHIC BOMB!!!"

Leila cast her hands outwards to the sides and upon her beck and call, a huge flame pillar emerged underneath Pharohmon, hurling him into the air. She drew a sword hidden in her armor and it burst into flame as she held it.

"FIERY SWORD!!!"

Leila leapt forward as Pharohmon began to fall and used her sword to slice him in half! She landed on the sand, and Pharohmon deleted in mid-air behind her.

"That was awesome!" shouted Kokuwamon. "You sure showed him!"

"Now we've got another Ultimate on our side!" exclaimed Lee, who had woken up in the heat of the battle. "Between you and SaintMachinedramon, Irvine doesn't stand a chance!"

i That should've been ME going to Ultimate! /i thought Hieshi, furious. i I have to! /i 

Leila returned to her child state of Renamon and took a slight bow. She picked up Rievermon up and supported him, as he was injured.

"I still like this form the best. Comfort level, I suppose," said Leila. "You know we don't have to return to Child form here, since we won't be discriminated against as we would in your world."

"Then I'll stay as Rievermon..." groaned Rievermon, pushing himself off of her. "I don 't need your help."

"If you say so..."

"Ugh, are we going to gloat about shiny people with swords or are we gonna turn around and get our asses moving?!" exclaimed Jeska, who had just woken up.

"Hey, someone's grumpy when they got up," commented Lee.

"No, she's always like this," said Magemon. They turned and began to walk again. "So how much further, Leila?"

"Uhm... not much longer..." she answered. "Are you four holding up alright?"

"Nothing phases me," replied Hieshi, trudging through the sand.

"Except for Shadow data... which makes you put your brother in a coma..." muttered Earnest from a few feet ahead of Hieshi. Hieshi stopped in his tracks and glared at Earnest.

"Oh no," sighed Lee, who was walking next to Jeska beside Hieshi.

"What was that? If you have something to say to me--"

"Then you can both just shut up and keep walking," interrupted Jeska, coming between them. She gave them each a stern look. "I don't care if you argue, but do it when I don't have to listen to your pathetic crap."

"Yes... of course..." agreed Hieshi, rather quickly.

"Ohhh man... not again!" they heard Lee shout. Lee jumped away from the sand he was standing on... as another wormhole appeared! Lee, Kokuwamon and Magemon all gasped as another void of swirling matter appeared in the sand!

"It's not the same as before?!" exclaimed Kokuwamon. "This time it's swirling the other way!"

"That means that something isn't coming out!" Leila shouted to them, her and Earnest the furthest distance away from it. "It's going to--"

Lee, Magemon and Kokuwamon were instantly sucked into it, vanishing into the purple-ish glow of the wormhole! Jeska ran away from Hieshi and Earnest when she saw Magemon disappear!

"Magemon! Come back!" she screamed.

"Jeska! Get back here!!!" yelled Earnest from behind her, but she ignored him. The wormhole sucked her in too!

"Damnit!" growled Leila. "Let's get in there before we lose them!"

Hieshi, Leila and Earnest turned to run for the wormhole, but it disappeared before they could get near it! They all stared in exasperation at the spot where Lee, Jeska and their partners had just been absorbed into.

"No! They could've ended up on any plane!" yelled Leila in horror. "We might NEVER find them!"

"Well..." began Hieshi, half-sarcastically. "Guess we can argue now..."

- - -

"Aaahhh!" screamed Lee as he emerged out of the wormhole and landed on lush soil. He groaned as pulled his face out of the dirt and got that barfy feeling again.

"Lee, are you alright?" asked Kokuwamon with concern. Lee put his hand over his mouth and nodded, trying not to spew all over the robot beetle.

"Ugh... yeah, I suppose," he replied, though it was muffled under his hand. "Where are we?"

Lee glanced at the lush forest, it was almost unreal how beautiful it was. The sky was sunny and bright, which was a welcome change from the snow of Tamur or the sand back in Gamma Sector.

"We're in Epsilon Server, the one above the one we were just in," answered Kokuwamon. "Although how far in we are, is a mystery. I don't see Jeska or Magemon here either... they're probably in another Sector."

"Great..." groaned Lee. "Just what we need..."

A couple miles ahead, Amara stopped walking and looked into the forest behind her. Her scientist companions stared at her, wondering what had got her attention so suddenly.

"Lee's here..." she whispered.

"Trainer? Alone?" inquired Irvine.

"He has his Digimon with him."

"Well then... this is the perfect time to finish him once and for all," said Irvine, getting excited. He turned to walk back, but Lunn rested his hand on Irvine's shoulder to put him at ease.

"Calm down, Irvine. We must keep going in the direction of the next sector. If we happen to see Trainer along our way, we can squash him then."

"You're... right," agreed Irvine, reluctantly. He really wanted to prove he was tougher than Green, who was earlier felled by Lee. "Let's continue towards Alpha Sector. That is where Desiree told us to go."

"Why are we going there, exactly?" asked Amara, as she and Crystalmon began to follow them in the direction of the compass again.

"Oh, uh... you'll see," replied Irvine, deciding to now ignore her and keep walking through the tropical paradise. "Oh, you'll see..."

Amara balled her fists, wondering about what her father said to her and what she read on the computer in the scientists' lair.

i Why do I have a feeling it has something to do with me...? /i 


	24. Unspoken Bonds

-1"Where do you think they went!?" exclaimed Hieshi, furious that Lee and Jeska had disappeared. Among the other Chosen, Hieshi was very picky about whom he tolerated. Jeska and Lee were the only two. Earnest was not someone he was proud to be stuck with.

"I don't know!" shouted Earnest back. "Our only way to figure it out is to press on and find them! Leila, do you think they were taken to another sector?"

"Most definitely. They could be one or even four sectors above us."

"Those wormholes make no sense," commented Hieshi, exasperated. "How can they just appear outta nowhere?"

"The lower three sectors: Epsilon, Gamma and Omega, are not as stable as the top two. Things are hectic here, and wormholes serve only to further confuse the poor beings that inhabit these sectors," explained Leila. "Like us."

"Well... that's beautiful," growled Hieshi. He sighed and shoved his hands in his pants pockets. "At least tell me we're near Omega City."

"Indeed we are," she told him. "Follow me, boys."

"I'll be glad when we're out of this sandy abyss..." commented Rievermon.

"We'd better hurry..." said Earnest. "We have no idea what kind of trouble Jeska or Lee will get into..."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Three: Unspoken Bonds /u /b 

Lee brushed his blue t-shirt off, clearing the dirt away from it. Fiddling with the necklace Ali gave him, he and Kokuwamon began to trudge on through the forest of Gamma Server.

"Hopefully we can find the others..." Lee said to the robot beetle. "This forest is starting to creep me out."

Dozens of Digimon were staring at them as they walked through. More like, staring at Lee. Humans were fabled in their world, and to actually see one was just like seeing a celebrity. Lee was not enjoying the attention.

"Human! Can you help me?" pleaded a Palmon, running up to him. Lee glanced down at the small vegetation Digimon as she tripped over her foot and landed on the ground in front of him. Lee kneeled down and picked her up.

"Help you with what?" asked Lee, somewhat concerned for the poor creature.

"There's a bad Digimon in the area!" shouted a Tentomon, flying down from the trees and landing next to Lee. Lee set Palmon back on her feet and looked at Tentomon. "He keeps killing all of our friends for fun!"

"That's sick!" exclaimed Lee. i Reminds me of Desiree. Poor James... /i 

The red beetle Digimon glanced at Kokuwamon, who was standing idly by.

"Humans give you the power to evolve at will, right?!" asked Tentomon. Kokuwamon nodded in response.

"Then you can help us!" stated Palmon. "We aren't going to survive much longer!"

"Who is it...?" asked Kokuwamon, cautiously. "We might not be able to handle him..."

Their attention was distracted as a few Child Digimon went running past them in horror. They looked up to see a Gabumon running as fast as they could towards them. Obviously he was acting as a lookout.

"He's coming! Megadramon is coming!!!" screamed Gabumon. Lee and Kokuwamon looked at each other, wondering what a Megadramon was.

"Do you know what a Megadramon is?" asked Lee. Kokuwamon shrugged.

"He's a big Perfect bully!" answered Palmon, defensively.

"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!"

Everyone's attention was focused on a huge explosion in the distance, which knocked a cluster of trees over. Lee and Kokuwamon took a step back, intimidated.

"Looks like this place isn't peaceful after all..." gasped Lee as a huge red dragon Digimon burst out of the trees and soared like a rocket into the sky! He grinned evilly and glanced down upon the forest.

"Face me you Child cowards!" he screamed to no one in particular. "I'm lord of this forest, and so as you continue to resist me, I'll kill you off one by one!"

Palmon, Gabumon and Tentomon cringed, running to hide behind Lee. They pushed him forward, signaling him to go fight. The blonde boy smiled nervously at them.

"You're the human! Show us what you can do!" said Gabumon.

"You wouldn't turn us down like those last humans, would you?" asked Palmon. Lee glanced at Palmon.

"Last humans!?" he demanded.

"Yes, two old men and a woman. And she was hot!" answered Tentomon. Palmon smacked him across the head.

"She's not even your species!" scolded Palmon.

"I still have good taste!" protested Tentomon. "You think she's hot too, right human?"

"Heh... that's Amara alright. And yeah, I think she's hot... but I have a girlfriend. Looks like Irvine and her were here not long ago..." He then turned down to Kokuwamon and pulled out his Hikari D-Volver. "Kokuwamon, let's wipe this guy out and then get to finding Irvine!"

"Right!" agreed Kokuwamon, assuming battle stance.

"Kokuwamon Shinka... TECKUWAGAMON!!! TecKuwagamon Shinka... GIGADRAMON!!!"

The three Child's gasped in amazement as Gigadramon soared into the sky to meet Megadramon. Megadramon's eyes widened as he saw his different-colored twin fly up to him.

"Hey there, good-looking," said Gigadramon, noting on how Megadramon was exactly like him except red. "Why don't you stop all this mindless violence and join a chess club?"

"You're no Child! You will be the ultimate test of my power, brother!"

"Now, I wouldn't say I'm your brother..." began Gigadramon, but his was cut off by Megadramon loading missiles and aiming his palms at him.

"DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!"

"What the hell?!" exclaimed Irvine. He, Lunn and Amara were just scaling a mountain that led out of the tropical haven when they looked back and saw a huge explosion in mid-air above the jungle. Amara was still hanging off a few rocks, with Crystalmon clinging to her back. She turned around to look at it too.

"It's Lee..." she gasped.

"I'm going there!" shouted Irvine.

"Fine, we'll eliminate Lee now, I guess," agreed Lunn.

"I have to climb back down? Awww..." groaned Amara, looking down at the ground and sighing

Meanwhile, the two dragons continued to duke it out.

"You'll die now!!!" screamed Megadramon.

"Not likely! Dragon Strangle!!!" yelled Gigadramon, wrapping his tail around Megadramon's neck in an attempt to choke him. Megadramon whipped his neck downwards, flinging Gigadramon downwards into the forest! A bunch of trees toppled and small crater were left in his wake, but he sprung right back up and flew back into the air!

"They're completely tied!" exclaimed Gabumon. "That's amazing how a Child can go from that weak to that powerful so fast!"

"I totally agree!" added Tentomon.

i Heh, I never thought about it before, but it is actually pretty cool... /i thought Lee. i If Gigadramon gets in deep though, I can always evolve him to Machinedramon. /i 

"Too bad, brother!!!" yelled Megadramon. He smashed Gigadramon across the head with his metal hand and opened fire on him as he began to fall! "DARKSIDE ATTACK!!!"

The missiles collided with Gigadramon and he screamed in agony as he plummeted into the forest one more time. The three Childs gasped in despair.

"Oh no! He's finished!" yelled Tentomon. "We're doomed! Doomed I say!"

"Don't be so sure..." Lee told them, his D-Volver glowing. Suddenly, Machinedramon emerged from the forest, standing a few meters above the trees! Gigadramon gasped in shock.

"Brother! You evolved!"

"That's right, 'brother'. A pity you won't live to do the same! GIGA CANNON!!!" yelled Machinedramon. He charged the two cannons on his back and fired right through Megadramon! He screamed as he clutched the two gaping holes in his chest before he broke up and deleted.

"Yay!!!" cheered Palmon. "You defeated the great tyrant Megadramon!"

"Thank you so much!" shouted Tentomon, buzzing around Lee happily. "If there's anything we can do for you..."

"Actually, there is," said Lee, as Machinedramon stomped his way over to where they were conversing. "How do I get to Epsilon Server?"

"That's easy, it's not far from here," answered Tentomon. He extended his claw East. "It's only maybe ten minutes from here. You can't miss it!"

"Thanks guys!" shouted Lee, as Tentomon, Gabumon and Palmon ran off back into the forest to spread the news of Megadramon's defeat. "Well Machinedramon, I think we've done our good deed for the day..."

"Bravo, Lee!" said a familiar voice. Lee and Machinedramon turned to see Irvine standing at the other end of the clearing, clapping his hands. He was alone, which Lee noted as a good thing. Irvine was grinning an evil grin on his balding head. He suit had a few dirty spots on it, but he was cleaner than Lee, whose jeans looked like they were dipped in mud.

"Irvine!" hissed Lee, unable to come up with something wittier to say.

"You're going to be quite the hero, just like in our world where your friends are without you to protect them."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you know that Desiree, Tammy and Rathjen did not travel to Trinity Server with us. Instead they stayed behind to get rid of the fodder. Like Ace, Arik, or Ali," said Irvine, putting an emphasis on Ali's name. "She's been through quite alot lately, I don't know if she'll be able to handle much more..."

"Shut up," growled Lee, getting slightly annoyed. "Ali can take care of herself, and if not, Ace will take care of her for me."

"And a lovely job those morons do without you."

"I've heard enough! Let's see how well YOU do without Desiree protecting you!" screamed Lee. "Blast him, Machinedramon!"

"Right, I'll-- what's the?!"

Irvine began to swirl with Shadow data, just like Green did. The Shadow data extended itself a long way, with Irvine's body disappearing inside of it. It settled on the form of a large sea serpent Digimon, which then took on silver and gold colors.

"And you'll do what!?" exclaimed Irvine in his new Digimon form. "Fight I, MetalSeadramon, who is another Ultimate and powered up by the Shadow data! I'll smear you across this forest!"

"Fat chance!" shouted Machinedramon. "GIGA CANNON!!!"

"RIVER OF POWER!!!" countered Irvine, firing a huge force beam from his nose cannon. They two blasts collided, causing a huge explosion in mid-air! Lee sweat-dropped and ran to get out of the way.

"Right! I forgot Irvine could transform too! This is very very bad!" he groaned.

"This will be good..." observed Lunn, he and Amara watching the battle from the top of a tree not far away. "It's too bad you couldn't take on Lee instead of Irvine. You two always were the greatest of rivals..."

"Maybe I still can..." she said, hoping to gain Lunn's attention. i Perhaps if I defeat Lee for them, they'll finally tell me what my purpose is. It's my best gamble... and Lee has shown me he doesn't care about me. So why should I care about him?! /i 

"You think I'm weak like Green, don't you?" asked Irvine, in his new form. "Well I'll assure you that I'm not!"

i Oh yeah, and Green was so weak he almost killed us... /i thought Lee, sarcastically. i Machinedramon can still take MetalSeadramon though... I hope. /i 

"DRAGON FIRE!!!" yelled Machinedramon, throwing a punch at Irvine. Irvine wrapped his serpentine body around the punch and head butted Machinedramon! He then coiled his body up and tackled him! Machinedramon collapsed onto his back and Irvine looked over top of him.

"Falling so easily?" he asked.

"GIGA CANNON!!!" he screamed, firing upwards at Irvine. Irvine was blasted in the chin and bended backward, collapsing onto the ground as well. Both Ultimates lay there, attempting to recover.

"Irvine, quit fooling around," said Lunn, appearing in the clearing with Amara. He looked at the fallen MetalSeadramon in contempt. "We have a mission to do."

"Right..." groaned Irvine, returning to his human form. He was standing upright when he transformed back. "And thus ends your preview of what will happen next time we meet, Lee."

"Looks like you lost to me."

"There shouldn't be a next time," Lunn told him. Irvine gave the karate master a confused look, and Lunn pointed at Amara. "Amara has offered to finish Lee off for us."

i She what?! /i thought Lee.

i That's right Lee, /i responded Amara, intercepting his thoughts. i You and I are going to fight one last time. /i 

"Damn it... she's still reading my mind..." growled Lee, quietly. "I don't want to fight her..."

"Lunn, are you sure about this?" asked Irvine. "We NEED Amara."

"I'm sure. Amara is my top student, I'm confident she will succeed," replied Lunn to him. He then turned back to Amara and tossed her a compass, which she caught in her right hand. She slipped it into the pocket of her black jacket. "Amara, we'll continue on to Alpha Sector. When you eliminate Lee, follow us there."

"Right."

Lunn and a distraught Irvine turned and left, leaving Lee, Amara, Crystalmon and a toppled Machinedramon alone in the forest. Lee was not pleased with this situation, but he wasn't about to let Amara stop him from finding Jeska and the others.

"Alright Amara, if you're intent on doing this, let's do this," he said. "You know you can't defeat me."

"On the contrary, Lee... I think it's about time you met my partner's Ultimate!!!"

"What?!" exclaimed Lee as Amara whipped out her still Yami D-Volver. Crystalmon began to evolve...

"Crystalmon Shinka... RUBYMON!!! Rubymon Shinka... SAPPHIREMON!!! Sapphiremon Shinka..."

Sapphiremon's armor exploded off of her body as she began to go through physical changes. Two more wings burst out of her back, giving her a total of four, and they began emerald colored. Her hair became green as well, along with a tiara forming on top of her head. In addition she was wearing just a breast plate and some shoulder pads, along with gloves, all of which were made of Emerald. She had a skirt too, but it was white with fancy decor on it, and emerald boots. A long sword was attached to a holster on the side of her boot.

"... EMERALDMON!!!"

Emeraldmon appeared and did a little pose to show off to the boys. Then she stood upright, making it clear that she meant business.

"She doesn't look so tough..." observed Lee. "Right Machinedramon?!"

"Right..." he groaned, pulling himself up off the ground. The mechanic Digimon readied himself or the third in the series of fights today. "Lee, after Megadramon and MetalSeadramon, I'm not feeling up to full strength..."

"Let's see how tough you are..." began Emeraldmon, the green beauty raising her dainty right arm into the air. "SUFFOCATION VINE!!!"

Huge vines shot out of the ground and wrapped themselves around Machinedramon's arms, legs, waist and neck! They were thick and incredibly powerful and he was unable to struggle against them!

"Machinedramon!" screamed Lee in worry.

"Now, let's see how far he flies," said Emeraldmon, giggling. She waved her arm to the right and Machinedramon was flung through the air, knocking over a battalion of trees in his wake! He crashed and skidded across the forest, and dozens of Biyomon and Hawkmon went flying for safety out of the trees he had knocked over.

"Oh that was fun! I think I'll go toss him around some more!" shouted Emeraldmon, taking to the air and soaring in the direction she flung Machinedramon. Lee faced Amara now that they were alone.

"Amara, why are you fighting me? You're not controlled by the Shadow anymore, are you?" asked Lee.

"Oh, would that make it easier to bear? Well sorry, I'm going this out of my god-given free will. I have no ties to you anymore!"

"But--"

"But nothing! We never finished our sparring match in the karate tournament! Let's go, blonde boy!" she shouted, running at him. Lee was taken completely by surprise and got decked right in the face! He fell onto his back and rolled backwards, leaping onto his feet again. She threw another punch at him and he jumped backwards to avoid it.

"I'm not going to fight you!"

"Why not?"

"Cuz you'll kick my ass!" exclaimed Lee. "I can still run!"

"Coward!" she shouted as Lee turned and bolted in the other direction. She leveled her eyes at him and dashed in pursuit.

i Hopefully I can distract Amara long enough to come up with a plan to beat her without having to fight her... /i he thought, hoping Amara was too distracted running to read his thoughts. i I just gotta find someway to convince her that attacking Lee is not good! /i 

Suddenly Lee tripped over something and fell into the dirt. He looked back at what he tripped over.

i Aha! A stick! /i he thought. He turned around, whipped it at her... and missed completely. He sweat-dropped. i A stick?! What the hell is wrong with me? /i 

"I'll tell you what's wrong with you..." growled Amara, kicking him in the chest and knocking him backwards. "EVERYTHING!!!"

"Oh, that's flattering--" began Lee before getting kicked right in the cheek! He gasped in pain as he felt some blood trickle down it. He glanced up at Amara, who looked so pissed at him that her look could kill.

"Fight me, Lee," she told him solemnly. "There's nothing more I want. If you won't love me then hurt me!"

"Amara..."

"Now!!!" she screamed, hurling a rock at him. He ducked it and got up to his feet once more.

He looked back at Amara and closed his eyes tight, swinging at her. She ducked it and punched him right in the gut! He staggered backwards, unable to bring himself to fight her when it wasn't competition or when she wasn't possessed. After all, she was his friend. How do you fight your friends?

i Ugh... I can't live through this... /i he thought was he held his gut and winced at his throbbing cheek, backing closer to the barrier leading to the snowy world. i I'm sorry Ali... I'm not going to make it back for you... /i 

"Argh!" screamed Amara, gripping her head. She seemed to be having a fierce headache as Lee recalled she did when her psychic powers manifested. She glared up at him, brushing her dark brown hair out of her eyes.

"Even right here fighting me you STILL think about Ali instead of me! Don't you even realize how pathetic you are?! Ali this! Ace that! James this! You're forgetting someone, you bastard! Me!" she yelled. "I hate you!"

She twirled around and kicked him in the chest again, sending him flying backwards. She spun back around and looked up, expecting to see Lee laying on the ground again... but he wasn't there anymore.

"Lee?" she asked into the unfamiliar silence and loneliness. She glanced around and noticed that behind where Lee was standing... was a cliff. She froze. "Oh shit. LEE!!!"

She ran over to the cliff and fell to her stomach, looking downwards. Falling downwards was Lee, screaming for help. She outstretched her hand in despair.

"Lee! No! Come back!!!"

And suddenly he stopped falling in mid-air, being held up by some unseen force. Amara gasped in shock. Lee was also extremely surprised.

"What the...?" he gasped, looking around, but seeing nothing holding him in the air. He almost screamed again and wiggled around, but he was being held firmly in place.

"Am I..." began Amara, looking at her outstretched hand in horror. "... doing that...?"

Amara, just to make sure, moved her hand to the right. Lee moved with it. They were both completely shocked.

"Amara..." he began, slowly. "How?"

"I... I don't know..." she answered, almost crying. i Argh! Why am I the freak?! First I can read peoples' minds... now this!? /i 

"So... if you hate me so much..." began Lee, looking over his shoulder at the long drop to the ground. "... why not drop me to my death?"

"I... agh... I can't do it...!" she cried. She focused her strength and used it to lift Lee back up to the top of the cliff. She released him and then fell to her knees and began to sob into her hands. Lee sighed and looked at her.

"Come here..." he told her, opening his arms and taking her into them. He patted her back and looked up at the sky. "It's going to be okay... I'm not sure what's wrong with you, but you're still Amara. A wonderful and beautiful person. Don't forget that."

"Thanks Lee..." she told him, weakly. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Uh... yeah, same," replied Lee, trying not to get to close to her. There was no way he was going to do anything that would betray Ali.

"You know what?" she asked, pulling away from him and whipping out her Yami D-Volver. "Screw this."

With but a thought, the Shadow data exploded off her D-Volver and it turned into a Hikari D-Volver. She smiled with satisfaction and looked at Lee.

"I don't care what Irvine or Desiree know about who I am... I can't fight for their side anymore. I want to be with you."

Lee wasn't quite sure what she meant by that, by being with him. So he just decided to try and keep things on his level.

"Alright Amara, I'll be glad to have to come along and fight with me!"

"Yeah... fight with you..." she agreed, rather disappointed. Lee rolled his eyes and then decided to change the subject.

"Maybe we should tell Machinedramon and Emeraldmon before they kill each other..."

Amara giggled and nodded. Then they turned back to head into the forest together. With Amara along with him, Lee knew he and Kokuwamon wouldn't be traveling alone. And he knew that whatever plans Irvine and Lunn had for her would be foiled now.

"Lee... I'm so sorry about everything..."

"It's okay. We all make mistakes..."

"But, your cheek looks so painful..."

"Yeah, so is my back, my stomach, but I can take it. I'm just so happy you've decided to join us," he told her, smiling. Her heart melted.

"And I'm happy... that you're happy..." she answered, somewhat depressed that he knew she was with Ali. She fumbled in her pocket and grabbed the compass Lunn gave her. "We can use this to track our way to Alpha Sector."

"Awesome," he replied, giving her the thumbs-up. "Jeska, Earnest and Hieshi are here too. Hopefully we run into them soon."

i Hopefully not. I want you all to myself... /i 

- - -

"Well Amara has severed her connection with us..." said Lunn, as he and Irvine trekked through the icy wastelands of the above server: Epsilon Server.

"It doesn't matter," Irvine told him. "Either way she'll end up where we need her. And then our greatest dreams will come true... and Lee will be crushed under the iron fist of the great one."

"If you say so..."


	25. Rathjen's Victory

-1"Rathjen, would you quit staring at that computer screen?" asked Desiree, walking into the main room of the scientists' lair and leaning against the wall. In the dim light given off by the glow of the monitor she could see Rathjen's face. "It's two in the morning."

"The wise conqueror must know all he can about his foes before he attempts to conquer."

"Uh-huh," she yawned. "You still answer to me, buddy."

"Whatever you say, Desiree. I will hit these children where it hurts the most before I kill them..."

"Do what you want. Just don't fail like Green," she told him, turning and leaving the room. He nodded and continued to glare through the focus of his glasses at the different profiles on his computer screen. He grinned widely.

"Let it commence..."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Four: Rathjen's Victory /u /b 

Christmas Day was over, and the hype had ended. Two figures opened the door to Lee's house and stepped inside.

Meanwhile, upstairs, someone was in Lee's bedroom, rummaging through his various belongings. A few shirts were tossed onto the floor as Alison herself was going through his things. She glanced over at his clock to see what time it was.

"Geez... three AM already?" she asked, mainly speaking to herself. "I've got to be able to find something! I know Lee loves me... but while I was gone, I don't know if he did anything with Amara. It's possible."

She rested her hand on his bedside table and sighed, wiping her hair out of her face.

"Or maybe I'm just paranoid," she sighed. "But after she gave Lee that horrible nightmare I'm not sure what she's capable of doing. Hopefully she kept her hands off."

Ali glanced down at the drawer and shrugged, figuring it was the only thing she hadn't checked. She may as well do it on her way out. She felt around inside and she didn't find any bras or panties. But her hand did rest on a velvet box. Her eyes widened.

"What the hell--" she began, but suddenly she heard a voice shout at her.

"Freeze!" yelled Ace from the other side of the room in the dark. "Nathan! Someone IS up here! DemiTyrannomon, get ready to roast him!"

"Wait--"

"DEMI BLAST!!!" she heard him yell. She dove over Lee's bed and the fireball collided into the wall, lighting the wall on fire! Ace screamed in shock.

"Ace! What the hell did you do?!" exclaimed Nathan, running into the room. "Put it out!"

"Uh..." began Ace. He picked up DemiTyrannomon and threw him into the wall, snuffing the flames out upon his impact. Nathan switched the light on and Ali, half on Lee's bed with her upper body hanging over the edge, smiled innocently.

"Why hello boys," she said, trying to sound seductive. "I was just here to... uh... oh god... make love to you...?"

"You don't deceive me with your lies!" yelled Ace, pointing an accusing finger at her. "You came to steal our hamburgers! You're hamburglar!"

"What the hell is he talking about?"

"I have no idea," replied Nathan, sweat-dropping. "We were coming back from Ace's parents' ski cabin and heard noises up here. Naturally, we thought it was a break-in."

"And then DemiTyrannomon lit the wall on fire," added Kotemon.

"Hey, shut up!"

"Well, I was just kinda... here..." began Ali, hoping she wouldn't actually have to tell them why as she stood up. "And look what I found!"

She held out the velvet box and Nathan, Ace and Kotemon all stared at it. Ace snatched it out of her hand.

"Oh my god!" he exclaimed. "It's a..."

He popped it open and they all gazed upon the hefty piece of jewelry inside. All their jaws dropped.

"... ENGAGEMENT RING!!!"

"Yeah... that's nice... someone wanna help me up...?" groaned DemiTyrannomon, unenthusiastically. They all sweat-dropped.

- - -

The next day at RTC, Ace, Nathan, and Arik were heading down to the cafeteria to buy some lunch before their third period classes. Arik was fairly stunned by the news Ace and Nathan were relaying to him.

"Can you believe Lee was going to propose to Ali?" asked Ace. "He's crazy! Why would you want to tie yourself down like that?!"

"Well she IS having HIS baby..." suggested Arik. The thoughtful boy glanced around at the myriad of people in the cafeteria and pointed at an empty spot in the line-up. The three of them headed over to it.

"Still, I wouldn't propose until after," protested Ace. "But Lee can rest assured that I will keep the ring safe and away from Alison."

Ace held the open velvet box in his open palm and Nathan almost screamed. He snatched the ring right out of Ace's hand.

"Are you mad?! You brought it to school?!" exclaimed Nathan. "Besides, I get to hold it until Lee gets back from Trinity Server!"

"Why do you get to hold it?" asked Ace and Arik at the same time.

"Because..." began Nathan, striking a heroic pose. "We all know that I'll be Lee's best man!"

Ace and Arik fell over.

"Yeah right, Nathan!" argued Ace. "Lee will make ME his best man!"

"You can even hold your coffee without spilling it! How will you hold a ring?!"

"You're never on time! You'll probably end up missing the whole wedding!"

"How do you know I won't be his best man?" asked Arik.

"Shut up, Arik!" they both shouted, practically right in his face. The three of them froze for a moment, trying to remember what they were arguing about.

"For the fifth time..." began an unimpressed cafeteria lady. "Would you like to order something?"

The three of them did, and returned to a table with their trays of food. Tori happened to be walking by and sat down between Ace and Nathan.

"Hey boys."

"Ah! Dark Chosen!" exclaimed Ace, falling backwards out of his chair. They all looked at him. "Heh heh... oh yeah, that's over now."

"Yeeeaah..." replied Tori, eating some of Nathan's fries. "So what are you guys being so loud about?"

"Engagement."

"Coffee."

"Boobs."

Tori glanced around, wondering which answer was right. She shrugged and got up from the table.

"If any of you guys ever get engaged, remind me to slap your wife..." she told them, walking away. Nathan, Arik and Ace looked on after her.

"Ah... there she goes..." sighed Ace, still on the floor. "The woman of my dreams..."

"I thought you hated her," said Arik.

"Whatever gave you that idea?!"

"Uh... you used to say you hated her all time," began Arik. "That's somewhat a clue."

"Screw that!" shouted Ace. "I should ask her out... but I don't know..."

"But we do," said Nathan, grabbing Arik and darting off after Tori.

"No, guys! Wait-- oh well," sighed Ace, looking at all the uneaten lunches on the table. "More food for me."

Arik and Nathan caught up with Tori, each taking one of her arms in theirs and walking with her. She looked back and forth between them frantically.

"What do you guys want?" asked the brunette with blonde highlights. Both boys grinned.

"Someone likes you," said Arik.

"Who? Oh god... is it Ray?" groaned Tori, slumping forward and allowing Arik and Nathan to drag her along as they watched.

"No, it's a much better three-letter word," replied Nathan. Tori's head looked up in shock.

"Ace?"

"Bingo," said Arik. "He'd like to know if you'd want to go out with him."

"When did this happen!?" exclaimed Tori. i Well it's about damn time he came around! /i 

"We don't know, but you should meet him at Central Park around three o'clock," Arik told her.

"Three o'clock. Yes. Then," added Nathan. "Don't be late."

Nathan and Arik shoved her off before she could even get another word out and looked at each other. They both giggled like idiots.

"So, should we tell Ace about this meeting?" asked Arik.

"I think that would be wise."

Nathan and Arik strolled off back to the cafeteria, while Dean Rathjen looked on from a dark corner. He'd heard everything.

"Hmmm..."

- - -

In another world... two more Chosen were walking as well. But instead of through school hallways, they were walking through raging snow and on thick sleets of ice. Amara and Lee were literally freezing their asses off as they attempted to trudge through the impassable terrain of Epsilon Sector.

"Lee... I'm freezing..." whined Amara, dropping to her knees. Her black jacket wasn't near enough to cover her up and she was almost turning blue. Lee was taking it better than she was, since he had already been wearing a heavy jacket when they were back in Tamur.

"Amara, will you be alright?" asked Emeraldmon. "I'd offer you shelter, but I'm not wearing much myself."

Emeraldmon was only decked out in a chest plate a shoulder pads, along with a skirt. She was using her four emerald wings to protect her own body from the cold. Lee looked up at Machinedramon, who was trudging along behind them at his own pace. Machinedramon nodded silently, already knowing what Lee was going to ask him.

"Here Amara... you can have my coat," said Lee, taking it off and tossing it on the ground in front of her. Her eyes widened as she glanced at it an threw it on hastily. Emeraldmon helped her stand up and she weakly looked at Lee.

"Thank you..."

"D-don't mention it..." groaned Lee, covering his now exposed arms with his hands. "Let's press on. I don't want to remain in this frozen wasteland any longer than we have to..."

Lee allowed Amara and Emeraldmon to walk ahead of himself and Machinedramon as they tried to find the portal to the next sector. Lee went and sat on Machinedramon's foot as he walked.

i It's so damn cold here... /i he thought, glancing through the vast land of ice. i But what's really surprising is that I suddenly care enough about Amara to give her my coat... /i 

Amara, hearing his thoughts, smiled. But she had thoughts of her own.

i Lee is very sweet... but right now I'm more worried about what I did earlier. Last I remember, I only had powers of ESP... not telekinesis as well. What is with me...? I'm really scared of what Irvine really wanted with me. He must've known this all along... /i 

"Amara! Everyone!" shouted Emeraldmon to get their attention. The three of them glanced at Crystalmon's Ultimate stage as she tensed up. "I'm sensing... an enemy!"

"It's a worm hole!" yelled Machinedramon. "I can see it from way up here! Something's coming out!"

Emeraldmon flew upwards to see what Machinedramon was looking at... and a rather large Digimon had emerged from the worm hole! It hadn't seen them yet, but it bellowed out anyway.

"I am Vikemon!!! I sense trespassers on my territory! Trespassers, when we meet you'll be sorry!!!"

"Oh great..." groaned Lee. "Just what we need..."

- - -

After much pushing and shoving, Arik and Nathan finally convinced Ace to go to Central Park and meet Tori. Arik drove there in Earnest's truck and stopped outside the bridge leading into the park.

"Go on, Romeo!" Nathan told him, throwing Ace outta the truck. "Don't come back until you score!"

"Pigs," commented Ali, who was in the passengers side of the truck. Arik sweat-dropped and drove off, leaving Ace sitting on the sidewalk by himself. He rubbed his ass and stood up.

"Thanks for nothing, Nathan," he mumbled to himself. He turned and crossed the bridge into Central Park. i Well the damage caused by our last fights here is fixed. The bridge is repaired from when Jeska turned me into MagnaAngemon; also the wreckage from mine and Tori's fight seems to be gone as well. Jolly good. Now where is she? /i 

"Ace!" he heard a female voice yell. It was most definitely Tori. He glanced over to see her sitting on a bench, waiting for him. She was dressed fairly nice for once, she was actually wearing a pink dress! And what a dress! Let's just say it didn't leave much to the imagination.

i Holy craaaap! She's so hot! And what did I wear? And army t-shirt and a pear of jeans I don't think have ever been washed. Stay cool, stay calm, stay collective. Don't stare down her dress, /i he told himself. He inched his way over to her. "Why hello, milady. Word is you wanted to see me."

"I was told you wanted to see me," Tori said to him, confused. They both stared at each other in realization, then glanced off in the direction Arik and the others drove up. "Nathan and Arik set us up!"

"Those bastards!" exclaimed Ace, pretending it actually mattered to him. i Well, they might be bastards for not letting me hold the ring, but they aren't for doing this for me! I must remember to set Nathan up with Tammy when she stops being a psycho-possessed-Shadow-zombie. /i 

"So, uhm, nice day isn't it?" asked Tori. Ace nodded in agreement. The snow had all melted and unusual warm weather had set in. It probably wouldn't last for long, but Ace was glad for it. It set an awesome scene for the day.

"Uh... yes. So... would you like to grab a bite?"

"Sure!" she answered, smiling. "I'd love that!"

Ace took her hand and lifted her from the bench. They turned to leave... but were faced with a very unpleasant sight. Both of them gasped.

"Dean Rathjen...?!" exclaimed Ace.

- - -

"So who's this Vikemon anyway!?" exclaimed Amara, somewhat frightened. She ran back to join Lee and Machinedramon.

"Well, he's an Ultimate!" Machinedramon told them. "That's good enough reason to panic, no?!"

"I'll take care of him!" shouted Emeraldmon, soaring down in his direction.

The shaggy, large and bulky Digimon glanced at her when he saw her coming into range. He opened his arms, about to swat her!

"SUFFOCATION VINE!!!" yelled Emeraldmon, raising her left arm into the air. Huge vines sprouted from the ground, wrapping themselves around Vikemon and immobilizing him! He growled and thrashed in an attempt to get them off of him.

"Fight me fair!" he growled.

"Not likely, you overgrown shag carpet," said Emeraldmon, lowering herself in front of his head.

"ARCTIC BLIZZARD!!!" he bellowed, blasting her with a stream of ice! She was flung backward and landed in the snow! Machinedramon stepped over Lee and Amara and began stomping towards Vikemon, who freed himself from the vines finally. "You not scare Vikemon!!!"

"Well I will! GIGA CANNON!!!"

The attack hit Vikemon, throwing him back. He then detached two spiked clubs from his back and charged at Machinedramon!

"Machinedramon! Look out!" screamed Lee.

"VIKING AXE!!!" he screamed, smashing Machinedramon with both clubs. Machinedramon staggered backwards and fell onto his back.

"He's too powerful in his element!" screamed Emeraldmon. "We need a way to keep him steady!"

"Well it worked before..." said Amara. "Hiya!"

Amara extended her hands, attempting to hold Vikemon still. He suddenly couldn't move his arms anymore and was unable to attack Emeraldmon or Machinedramon with his clubs!

"That did it!" shouted Lee. "And I see the portal!!!"

Lee pointed to their right and there was a portal atop a small pedestal. It was hard to see in the snow, but it was there. Emeraldmon nodded and flew downwards, picking up Kokuwamon. She flew over and snatched up Lee and Amara as well. Amara's telekinetic grip on Vikemon had broke and he began to charge after them!

"Come back here!!!" he bellowed.

"No!!!" shouted Amara back. Emeraldmon flew all of them into the portal and they disappeared. Vikemon was confused and he glanced around, wondering where they went.

"Ugh... Vikemon seeing things..." he groaned before wandering off back into the snow.

- - -

"How did you know we were here?" growled Ace, stepping in front of the dressed up Tori. Rathjen simply sneered in Ace's direction, making both him and Tori uncomfortable. i Great! This guy is one of those nut jobs working for Desiree! If he so much as lays a hand on Tori-- /i 

"Oh Ace... you make me sound like some sort of villain with your tone of voice. I'm not. I simply want to help you..."

"Help us do what?"

"Use your partners to their full extent. To rejoin Desiree as part of the Shadow! Tori, this offer is for you and extended to Ace as well..." he told them. "You see, I know all about you two... both of your parents neglect you, you search for other sources to release your emotions."

Ace and Tori remained silent.

"Tori used to try to go to you, Ace, for comfort, but you pushed her away and drove her to the Shadow. Isn't that gratifying to know?"

"I've heard enough of your crap!" yelled Ace, pulling out his D-Volver. "Tori, stand back, I don't want you to get hurt."

"Oh shut up," Tori told him, pulling out her D-Volver and showing it to him. "I might have forgotten to mention this, but my partner is back."

"Oh, well then..." he began, turning his attention back to Rathjen. "You better get out of here, old man. Or we'll sic our partners on you."

"On the contrary..." said Rathjen with a confident tone. "You'll be LUCKY if your partners aren't bits of data scattered in the sky!!!"

"We'll see!" shouted Ace, thrusting his D-Volver forward. "Come out DemiTyrannomon!"

DemiTyrannomon appeared on the park walkway in front of Ace. He looked like he had been sleeping before Ace called him there.

"Huh? Five more minutes mommy..."

"DemiTyrannomon! Blast Rathjen!" ordered Ace. DemiTyrannomon nodded, wondering why he had to shoot a human. He didn't really care though.

"DEMI BLAST!!!" he shouted, sending fire in Rathjen's direction. Rathjen stood there, and it appeared he was going to take a beating.

But apparently not. The fireball blast fizzled out right before it touched the RTC dean. Rathjen then began to swirl with Shadow data, sending a fierce wind in the direction of Ace, Tori, DemiTyrannomon, and Salamon. They all took a few steps back as it began to form into a Digimon.

"This is like what Green did!" exclaimed Tori.

"Yeah... but look how much BIGGER this guy is!" added Ace.

And he was right. Rathjen's new form was big enough to just tower over the trees in the park. He looked like a huge quadruped dinosaur. His head was completely mechanic though and tubes ran back from it, attaching to two long-barreled cannons mounted on his back. Another cannons was mounted on the armor covering his upper chest. He slammed a huge tail on the ground behind him.

"Meet my better half: Cannondramon!!!" bellowed Rathjen/Cannondramon. "The last Digimon you'll ever see! So take a good look!"

"That's the most awesome Digimon I've ever seen..." gasped Ace.

"Hey!" exclaimed DemiTyrannomon.

"Err, except for you, of course."

"I'm betting he's an Ultimate..." guessed Tori. She glanced around at the cars being parked outside of the park where people were trying to get a good look. "We're attracting attention, anyway."

"Good! Then everyone will see that Lee isn't the only one capable of taking down one of these psychos!" shouted Ace. "DemiTyrannomon, let's see some wings!"

"Right! DemiTyrannomon Shinka... DRAGONMON!!! Dragonmon Shinka... METALDRAGONMON!!!"

"Alright! You too, Salamon!" agreed Tori.

"Salamon Shinka... KAZEMON!!! Kazemon Shinka... ZEPHYRMON!!!"

MetalDragonmon stood on the park walkway across from Rathjen, while Zephyrmon floated next to his head. Ace and Tori backed away from them.

"You know Ace, this'll be the first time we've fought together..."

"Yeah, and if we do a good job here! Then it's off to a hotel room!" he shouted.

"Uh... in your dreams."

Rathjen laughed in MetalDragonmon and Zephyrmon's general direction. Both Perfects scowled at him.

"Oh this should be rich..." began the robotic dinosaur. "Hit me with your best shot, data creatures!"

"With pleasure!!! DRAGON MISSILES!!!" bellowed MetalDragonmon, opening his chest plates and launching two missiles at him. The missiles hit him directly in the head, knocking his neck back. Zephyrmon appeared right in front of his exposed chin.

"HURRICANE KICK!!!" she yelled, kicking him right in the head! He fell backwards and looked up to see MetalDragonmon hovering above him now.

"AERIAL INFERNO!!!"

Rathjen was pelted with fire and rolled across the park, knocking trees over and crushing benches as he did. He came to stop and pulled himself back onto his feet.

"Are you having fun?" he asked.

"Oh hell yes!" answered Ace.

"Good... because now it will be that much more shocking..." he began, locking his back cannons into place. "... when I crush you!!! GRENADE STORM!!!"

He launched three grenades from the cannons on his back! MetalDragonmon barely had time to move before he was hit by all three of them! He screamed and collapsed onto the ground, groaning and burnt.

"Grr... PHOTON ORBS!!!" screamed Zephyrmon, launching the two orb bombs at Rathjen! They both exploded on him, but appeared to have no effect whatsoever. Zephyrmon gasped.

"That was fun... let me try! DINO CANNON!!!"

He aimed the much smaller cannon on his chest at Zephyrmon and fired it! The missile exploded on impact with her and sent her screaming to the ground. She groaned and tried to get up, but collapsed with a thud.

"No, Zephyrmon!" cried Tori. "Ace, we just got our asses handed to us!"

"Bwahaha! You thought you were winning, didn't you? Oh how exhilarating a battle that was. Pity it ends so soon..."

Cannondramon began stomping towards the fallen Zephyrmon, who was closest to him. The female Digimon was laying motionless and had no way to defend herself!

"No! He's going to squash her!" screamed Tori. "I can't watch! I don't want to lose here again!"

"MetalDragonmon, do something!!!" yelled Ace, single-mindedly wanting to protect Tori and her partner. He D-Volver began to glow, and they all knew what that meant. "Go to Ultimate!!!"

"MetalDragonmon Shinka..."

MetalTyrannomon turned into a more humanoid warrior form, although he was still all black. His two wings looked smooth, like shields coming out of his back. He still looked somewhat like a dragon, though.

"... WARDRAGONMON!!!"

WarDragonmon leapt in front of Zephyrmon and body-checked Rathjen, knocking him away! Rathjen staggered to remain on all four feet and glanced at WarDragonmon.

"Excellent. An Ultimate will be a much more worthy foe than a Perfect..."

"Awesome! He evolved!" shouted Tori. "And you guys did that just to save my partner! Thank you!"

"Don't sweat it, Tori..." replied Ace, smiling. "With WarDragonmon on our side we can't lose now!"

"Oh you'd like to think that!" yelled Rathjen, threateningly. He aimed his chest cannon at WarDragonmon. "DINO CANNON!!!"

WarDragonmon kicked the missile harmlessly into the air and leapt forward at Rathjen! Rathjen used his long neck to successfully bash WarDragonmon away with his head! He then charged at the woozy WarDragonmon and tackled him! WarDragonmon was sent flying backwards through a tree, but remained in the air.

"You're stronger than I thought," said Rathjen.

"I'm even stronger than that," said WarDragonmon, leaping into the air. "ICE DRAGON CLAW!!!"

He smashed Rathjen with his claw, freezing him on contact. Rathjen was encased in a solid block of ice! Ace and Tori cheered.

"Looks like that's it for him..."

"Not quite!" yelled Rathjen, shattering the ice and startling them all. "You insult me! I am not so easily defeated!"

"You will be!" shouted WarDragonmon. He flew upwards and looked down at Rathjen, then opened his mouth wide. A huge energy bal began to form in front of it and it was getting bigger.

"What the--?!" exclaimed Rathjen.

"Awesome! That's his Terra Inferno!" Ace told Tori. "He'll charge that thing up until it's like twice his size and then blast it down at Rathjen!"

"There's no way he'll survive!" cheered Tori, happily.

The Terra Inferno ball of energy was now the size of WarDragonmon and still pulsating as it grew bigger. Rathjen gasped in terror.

i No! If he launches that thing I'm guaranteed to be destroyed! And my Digimon form is too big to avoid his attack quickly! I'm doomed! ... or am I? /i he thought to himself, getting an idea. He aimed his back cannons at WarDragonmon. "GRENADE STORM!!!"

Rathjen launched three more grenade bombs right into the heart of WarDragonmon's charging attack... and they exploded setting his own Terra Inferno off right in his face!!! WarDragonmon screamed in agony as he shot backwards and smashed right through the cement of the street, knocked clear out of the park!

"No!" screamed Ace. "He's--"

"Finished," said Rathjen, stomping towards Ace and Tori. "Just like you two."

Rathjen slammed his dinosaur foot down onto the ground in front of them, knocking them backwards. They both hit their heads on the pavement and fell unconscious. He grinned, satisfied with his work.

"Excellent. Now I have two prisoners with which to lure the others to me... and then I'll kill them all at once. WarDragonmon's own attack was his undoing! Ahahahaha!!!"

Rathjen turned back into his human form and picked up Ace and Tori. They then disappeared in a portal of Shadow data created by Desiree. Zephyrmon groaned and crawled onto her hands and knees.

"I have to... tell the others..." she groaned. She weakly flew over to where WarDragonmon had crashed and picked up DemiTyrannomon. Policemen began to accost her.

"Freeze, monster!" they screamed. Zephyrmon simply flapped her wings in their direction, knocking them over. She then took off to find help...


	26. Historic Mysteries

-1And at the top of Trinity Server... are the Spires. There are three. One of them is abandoned... and has been that way for the longest of millennia. The other two are the Hikari and Yami Spires, each one representing Digimon of those elements. While light and darkness are attempted to be governed together... at times disputes break out between the two.

"DeathXmon, your way of thinking is wrong!" screamed Seraphimon, a majestic angel Digimon with ten golden wings. Seraphimon was heavily armored and the leader of the Hikari Spire. "We cannot wipe out the lower three Servers, other Digimon exist there! We can't just kill them!"

Seraphimon was hovering atop Hikari Spire, while DeathXmon was hovering atop Yami Spire. The three spires formed a triangle around a surface that was completely metal. There was nothing in Alpha Server besides the three spires at each corner of the metal floating platform.

"Seraphimon, your way of thinking is why our world does not flourish!" argued DeathXmon. "If we destroy the lower sectors and split the power between our spires, we might be able to break the barrier and travel to the Server we sent the Chosen Digimon to!"

He was certainly an intimidating sight. He had a very large metal body which moved oddly by floating through the air. Six large black wings protruded from the lower back of his body, allowing him to maneuver. His hands extended far from his body and were attached by some sort of Digi energy acting as his arms.

"We have no need to go there, my friend," said Seraphimon, trying to reason with him. "We must govern our world, which includes Epsilon, Gamma and Omega Sectors."

"Bah, I am sick of this world! And so is my council! If you won't agree with me, you risk war Seraphimon!!!"

While the two beings of ultimate power argued, Jeska and Teferimon were standing down in the center of the triangle, staring up at them. The red head was fairly intimidated by their awesomeness annd was too afraid to move.

"Teferimon..." she began, speaking to her Perfect form partner. "Where the bling-bling are we...?"

"This is Alpha Sector," Teferimon told her. "The highest of all the planes. It looks as if Lee and Kokuwamon were sent somewhere else by the worm hole..."

Jeska noticed that the floating triangle appeared to be a circuit board, and that the horizon all around it seemed to be a black abyss with green grid marks all over it. She figured they were in the heart of Trinity Server.

"Who the crap are those big mothers?"

"Well... the one on top of the Hikari Spire is Seraphimon. He is the one who chose Kokuwamon and the others to be partners with Lee and company a year ago," explained Teferimon. He then turned and pointed at DeathXmon. "That is DeathXmon. He chose Myself, Crystalmon, and the others to escape into Irvine's care. Since I have converted, it would be wise not to run into him."

"To hell with you!" yelled DeathXmon. "I'll see you dead before the end of the day!"

With that, DeathXmon disappeared back into his spire. Seraphimon fumed and went back into his as well. Teferimon walked past the stunned Jeska in the direction of Hikari Spire.

"Come Jeska, let us take our issue to Seraphimon. We must warn him about Irvine and-- Jeska... what is wrong?"

Jeska didn't even look at Teferimon as she spoke, still staring at something.

"Teferimon... why is the a huge naked statue of AMARA in the center of this place?"

Teferimon glanced at where Jeska was looking and indeed there was a large stone replica of Amara mounted on top of some metal. She wasn't wearing clothes at all and had angelic wings coming out of her back. He hands were clasped between her breasts in prayer, as if depicting her as a saint.

"My..." gasped Teferimon as he noticed the statue. "I... don't know..."

Teferimon began to walk towards it and Jeska slowly followed, unable to take her eyes off it.

"Amara looks so beautiful..." gasped Jeska. "But who has been carving her in the nude?"

Teferimon leaned down to look at an inscription on the bottom of the statue. He gasped in alarm. Jeska ran over to read it as well.

"In loving tribute to the passing of... Our Savior?" read Jeska in confusion. She looked up at the statue again. "Teferimon, I think we're missing a big piece of the puzzle here..."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter 25: Historic Mysteries /u /b 

Earnest glared at the portal from Gamma to Epsilon sector. He thought the forest haven they were in was too good an opportunity to leave right before nightfall. As Leila had told him, when night comes in Trinity Server, things get very dangerous.

Hieshi didn't care though. He wanted to press onto the next sector right away, fully knowing it was an icy wasteland. He and Rievermon stood in front of the portal, waiting for Earnest to join them. Earnest and Leila did not approach Hieshi and the demon Digimon, however.

"Well, are you coming?" asked Hieshi, getting impatient.

"No, it's about nightfall and I say we should sleep here where it's safer," Earnest protested.

"Fuck sleep," said Hieshi. "We don't get anywhere by laying on our asses and fantasizing about fields and ponies. We have to go, find Lee and Jeska, find my brother's partner, and beat the hell out of Irvine."

"Sleep is an essential, you idiot," argued Earnest. "Or maybe you forgot that along with your self-control when you--"

"You mention James one more time and I might lose my self-control AGAIN!" yelled Hieshi. "Screw this, we don't need them Rievermon. Let's go."

"Yeah go die for I care," mumbled Earnest as Hieshi and Rievermon walked through the portal atop the pedestal and disappeared.

"Are you sure that was wise?" asked Leila, who had remained silent during the duration of their argument. "Hieshi may... have his own ways. But he is still a valuable ally."

"We don't need him!" shouted Earnest. "Why doesn't anyone understand that?! He's psycho, he can't be trusted! Now lets go to sleep."

"Fine," she said, somewhat annoyed. "Sleep it is."

- - -

Jeska and Teferimon approached the large door of Hikari Spire, putting the thought of the Amara statue behind them for a moment. Two angelic Digimon stood guard outside the doors. Jeska immediately recognized them.

"Those are MagnaAngemon! I remember I turned Ace into one way back when..." whispered Jeska. Teferimon nodded and shifted his molecules into those of a MagnaAngemon. Jeska was taken by surprise as Teferimon wrapped his arm around her waist and hoisted her into the air. "... uhhh. What are you doing?"

Teferimon pulled her close to his new angel body and covered her by folding the left half of his wings over her body.

"Don't move," he told her. He approached the other MagnaAngemon guards and nodded at them. They nodded and allowed him inside the Hikari Spire. Teferimon stepped inside and was awed by the hallowed halls. Everything was so shiny... and clean. He'd never seen such a place.

"Can I come out now?" asked Jeska, although her speech was muffled by Teferimon's angel wings.

"No," he told her. "We have to be absolutely discreet until we can find a place to--"

"Teferimon, what are you doing?" asked the stern voice of Seraphimon from behind them. Teferimon and Jeska froze.

"... crap."

"Well, Teferimon. I don't care why you're here," Seraphimon told him. "I've already heard of your conversion. Now abandon that MagnaAngemon form. We're all friends here."

"I like the MagnaAngemon form," replied Teferimon, defiantly. He did not want Seraphimon to know about Jeska.

"I'm already aware you have a human with you. I promise you no harm will come to her. Remember, this is a tower of benevolence."

"Teferimon, please... Seraphimon seems like a nice enough guy..." said Jeska, wiggling out of his grip and turning to face Seraphimon. "Hello."

"Hello, human," he replied. "You two have unfortunately come at a bad time. Our brother Spire has just declared war on us. I cannot guarantee your safety if you are to stay here, although you are welcome."

"So give me a more accurate description of this place other than Hikari Spire," Jeska asked of him. Teferimon grumbled and returned to his true, armored form. He didn't like the idea of being around Seraphimon... he wasn't used to it. He was used to being around DeathXmon.

"I'm going to go find a room to lay down in while you two talk," said Teferimon. "Have fun learning, Jeska."

"Okay... see you later," she said as he walked off. She then turned back to Seraphimon. "If I have some questions, it won't distract you from what you have to be doing... will it?"

"No," he replied, softly. "I have a council making defense tactics. You are a guest in our world! Let me show you around!"

i Finally, a nice Digimon... /i 

- - -

Meanwhile, Hieshi and Rievermon were traversing their way through the icy depths of Gamma

Sector. Night had fallen, so the land was below freezing and extremely hard to navigate in the dark. Hieshi

was shivering more with each step he took, but he trudged on bravely.

"Hieshi, why don't we turn back?" asked Rievermon in his low growl of a voice. "I'm freezing... and you're turning in the world's most obnoxious Popsicle."

"No," spat Hieshi, not wanting to be a coward. "I got where I am today by moving forward, not sitting on my ass! I intend to continue that trend."

"You just don't like knowing Earnest is right," argued the demon. "Why do you hate him so much? Not that I wouldn't hesitate to eviscerate him for you..."

"We're complete opposites. He's all noble and I'm all... not. I don't feel like hanging around that ass-wipe anywa--" Hieshi stopped in mid-explanation. "Did you hear that?"

"Yes... it sounds like rumbling," agreed Rievermon, getting defensive. "Hieshi, it's coming from the left!"

Hieshi was having trouble seeing the dark, but Rievermon had no problem. He saw the hulking form of Vikemon come stomping in their direction, screaming angrily.

"A Digimon is coming! He's a big one!!!" screamed Rievermon.

"Vikemon try smash other humans but no success! Vikemon smash this human instead!!!" he bellowed, brandishing his clubs in his hands. He leapt forward at them. "VIKING AXE!!!"

"DEATH REA-- aw crap," muttered Rievermon, noticing Vikemon was practically on top of him. Vikemon smashed him with both clubs, knocking him across the ice. Hieshi gasped and looked up at Vikemon.

"You die NOW!!!" bellowed Vikemon.

- - -

"So..." began Jeska, staring out a window with Seraphimon. Night had fallen onto Alpha Server and it was a marvelous sight. With no buildings and lights to dim the view, a whole sky of stars was easily visible. "... why is Teferimon so nervous around you?"

"He's paranoid because we used to be enemies. He and the others were bandits before DeathXmon sent them into your world. I guess now that he is Hikari he doesn't feel like he belongs. I'm sure he'll get over it."

"Yeah... I hope so," said Jeska. She looked at Yami tower... and that other tower. It had an ominous feel to it, or so she thought. "What's with the third tower?"

"It was once governed by another being such as DeathXmon and myself. She was known... as DarkNitemon," explained Seraphimon with a solemn tone. "She was radical... and insane. She tried to destroy Alpha Sector... which would result in the destruction of all of Trinity Server."

"Oh my god... what happened to her?"

"DeathXmon and myself were unable to defeat her. But... another being saved us from complete annihilation. She imprisoned DarkNitemon in her own tower for eternity, but only by sacrificing her life to do it."

"That's amazing..." gasped Jeska. "Who saved you?"

"We did not know her name or origins. So we referred to her only as our savior."

Jeska's eyes widened. i What?! But... if that statue of Amara... is their savior... then that means... she's the celestial being! But that's not possible! Amara is just a normal... telepathic... oh my god... /i 

"How long ago was this?!" demanded Jeska, getting very worked up. Seraphimon was thrown off by her tone, but decided to answer anyway.

"Eighteen years ago," he answered.

i That's... that's how old Amara is! But if she died then... argh! I need to talk to that wench now! /i thought Jeska with eyes wide open. "Seraphimon, there are other humans in this world. One of them looks exactly like your savior. Her name is Amara."

"Really...? I'll have to meet this human and--"

"Lord Seraphimon!!!" shouted a MagnaAngemon, running into the room and interrupting their conversation. He stopped to catch his breath while staring at the silver floor. Seraphimon gave his subject a glance of compassion.

"What is it, my son?"

"DeathXmon has declared Alpha Death-match!" blurted the holy angel between gasps for breath. "You surely cannot take up such a challenge!"

"As well as I can fly, I can fight!" said Seraphimon, taking an intimidating step forward. "I may be old, but I am still one of two Spire Guardians!"

"There'll only be DeathXmon left if you accept!" protested MagnaAngemon. "Please, let me fight in your place!"

"What the hell is Alpha Death-match?" inquired Jeska, uncharacteristically concerned for Seraphimon. She knew he was noble and honest, a rare quality. She couldn't stand the thought of such a kind Digimon being hurt in battle.

"A fight to the death," said Seraphimon. "Ancient leaders invoked it for control over Alpha Server. It appears DeathXmon is aware of it..."

"You can't fight!" protested MagnaAngemon.

"I can and will! I'll protect my world!" shouted Seraphimon, beginning to get angry. "I'm going to--"

"You're going to do nothing, old man," said Teferimon, walking into the room and gaining all their attention. Jeska was surprised to see him back so soon. "I have an idea that will ensure your survival and DeathXmon's defeat."

"I already know what you're thinking..." grinned the red-head. She and Teferimon both nodded, preparing to put their plan into motion.

- - -

Earnest lay on the grass, staring at the night sky of Gamma Server. He was still fuming about his earlier argument with Hieshi, but was beginning to understand his point of view.

"I have grass in my hair..." he muttered to himself, noticing it latched onto his long black hair.

"So you can't sleep either?" asked Leila, who was laying a few feet away from him.

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"Hieshi may have been right... as much as I hate to admit it. Lee and Jeska are out there somewhere... and we can't waste any time in searching for them."

"So what do you plan to do?" inquired Leila.

Earnest sat up, now determined to find the others. "Let's go."

- - -

Seraphimon exited the Hikari Spire to see DeathXmon awaiting him near the center of Alpha Server. DeathXmon had a small entourage of demon Digimon behind him, mainly there to make sure Seraphimon didn't cheat. A few MagnaAngemon and Jeska accompanied Seraphimon. The two godlike creatures faced off in the middle of the Alpha Triangle.

"What is this you're housing?" asked DeathXmon. "A HUMAN? You're even more despicable than I thought!"

"I didn't come here to exchange banter. I came here to settle things."

"What? The mighty Seraphimon not wanting to negotiate? Oh that is rich," laughed DeathXmon, flexing his strange arms. "But you know that you don't have as much physical power as I do... why not submit now?"

"Do you see me backing down?"

"The sudden change in attitude is refreshing. I'll enjoy this!"

DeathXmon motioned for his minions to step away, and Seraphimon did the same. Jeska smiled as she watched the two prepare to go into combat.

i Little does DeathXmon know that Seraphimon is really Teferimon in disguise. Since Seraphimon is too old to fight, I figured Teferimon would stand a better chance. /i 

"FLAILING DARKNESS!!!" screamed DeathXmon, hurling a lump of dark energy at Seraphimon. Seraphimon leapt out of the way and DeathXmon began hovering in the air. Seraphimon took to the air also.

i I'm still not used to flying... /i thought Teferimon, attempting to steady his angel body. i This could be a bad thing. /i 

"FLAILING DARKNESS!!!"

DeathXmon hurled another energy lump, hitting Seraphimon square in the chest this time! He fell backwards, slamming his back against the hard metal ground! Luckily his wings were there to cushion his fall.

"Ugh..." groaned Seraphimon, standing up. DeathXmon laughed heartily.

"You fool! I told you, you were no match for me!"

"Shut your face," growled Seraphimon. "SEVEN HEAVENS!!!"

Seraphimon launched seven energy orbs in DeathXmon's direction and they collided with his armored body. The attack wasn't enough to knock him out of the air; so, Seraphimon spread his golden wings and soared at the stunned DeathXmon! DeathXmon regained his awareness and dodged right just in time to avoid a kick from the holy angel!

"You fight better than I remember!"

"Let's just say I've got a little secret."

i Yes! Keep it up! /i silently cheered Jeska. i This seems like a good enough way to make up for the misdeeds I did for Desiree. But once I get my hands on those scientist fags, they're going to pay dearly for using me! /i 

- - -

"I'm screwed!" screamed Hieshi, his life flashing before eyes as Vikemon was nearly on top of him. Suddenly, he heard a female's voice scream an attack.

"BACKHAND STRIKE!!!" yelled Leila, in her final form of WarRenamon. The armored Renamon leapt swiftly onto the scene, smashing Vikemon away from Hieshi! Vikemon landed on the ice and slid through it for a few minutes before crashing into the side of a mountain. A large pile of snow then fell on him.

"Ugh... did you save me AGAIN?" asked Hieshi, not sure whether he was grateful or disgusted.

"Unfortunately," said Earnest, approaching him through the snowstorm. "I suppose you were right about pressing on, not that I particularly like this frozen wasteland."

"If we can get rid of fuzzy over there then we'll be able to move on," Hieshi told him. He then turned to the fallen Rievermon. "Rievermon! Get up!"

The demon Digimon groaned and pushed himself up with his hands. He then spread his wings and took into the air. Both he and Leila faced Vikemon, who was thrashing wildly at a mound of snow in attempts to get out. He was rambling as he did so.

"First two humans make a fool of Vikemon, then two more humans make a fool of Vikemon! Vikemon won't have it any longer!!!"

"Two humans...?" asked Earnest. "That means Lee and Jeska must have been here."

"Or one of them was with someone else," countered Hieshi. "Like Amara."

"But I thought Amara was evil."

"She's--" began Hieshi, but he was cut off as Vikemon burst out of the snow, madder than ever before. He glared at Hieshi and Earnest, then began to rampage towards them.

"DIE NOW HUMANS!!!"

"PSYCHIC BOMB!!!" yelled Leila, causing a pillar of fire to rise up underneath Vikemon. He was sent flying into the air near where Rievermon was hovering.

"Say farewell to your dismal existence. DEATH REAPER!!!"

Rievermon shot at him, gouging him multiple times in the stomach with his claws until Vikemon deleted. The group of them let out a small sigh of relief.

"Hopefully the action is over for today," sighed Earnest, walking over to Leila. Hieshi nodded before he noticed something on the ground between where Earnest and Leila were.

"Holy shit-- Earnest, Leila! Look out!"

Suddenly the pair were sucked into a wormhole that materialized beneath them! Hieshi and Rievermon didn't want to get separated, so they ran for the wormhole as well!

"Great... now I'm WILLINGLY pairing myself up with this guy... what's wrong with me?" Hieshi asked himself before he and Rievermon disappeared into the wormhole as well, leaving the arctic regions of Epsilon Server behind them.

- - -

"Care to share the secret of your newfound power?" inquired DeathXmon, breathing heavily from his ongoing bout with Teferimon who was still disguised as Seraphimon. "You're a better fighter, but your attacks just don't have the same oomph."

i That's because I'm a Perfect in the form of an Ultimate... which means my strength is still that of a Perfect... /i thought Teferimon, keeping that knowledge to himself. i Why am I doing this for that old Digimon anyway...? Perhaps I'm not. Perhaps I'm doing it for Jeska. /i 

"I'm as strong as I ever was!" yelled Seraphimon. "SEVEN HEAVENS!!!"

The seven orbs of energy hit DeathXmon's body, but failed to leave any sort of impact on him. The Yami leader frowned.

"Your attack seemed to suggest otherwise. But if we must still continue down this path... I'll end it right now!" DeathXmon told him. He raised his right arm into the air, gathering darkness in it. Teferimon and all his onlookers gasped in shock.

"That's his most powerful attack!" yelled a MagnaAngemon.

"Correct!" shouted DeathXmon, forging the energy into what looked like a spear. "DEATH SPEAR!!!"

He hurled the spear with blazing speed and it gouged right through Seraphimon's chest! He screamed and fell over backwards, shifting back to Teferimon. Jeska screamed out for him as DeathXmon grinned.

"No! Teferimon! Oh my god!"

"As I thought..." began DeathXmon. "It was an imposter. None other than one of my former servants: Magemon. Why would you sacrifice yourself for Seraphimon?"

"I..." was all Teferimon managed to get out before slumping backwards on the circuit board. Jeska ran over to him and knelt down, pleading for him to get up.

"Now... this human... could she be Teferimon's partner?" asked DeathXmon. "If it's true, than our little experiment did work..."

"You monster!" hissed Jeska, extremely angry about Teferimon's defeat. "Your experiment gave me my best friend in the whole world! And now you've killed him!"

"Who cares? Now that I have won the sacred competition, Seraphimon will now bow to me. It was his fault for sending another to fight in his place."

"Wrong!" gasped Teferimon, suddenly coming back to consciousness. "I'm... not dead... yet..."

"Teferimon..." began Jeska, tears swelling in her eyes.

"Hah! What can you do?! Surrender and you might live," DeathXmon threatened. "I'm through playing games with Seraphimon's toys."

"I think..." groaned Teferimon, pulling the bloody spear out of his chest and clutching the gaping hole in it as he shakily stood up. "That you're about to see just... what your experiment can do!"

Jeska noticed her D-Volver was glowing, and that only meant one thing. She whipped it off of her belt and thrusted it at Teferimon, consuming him with light.

"Teferimon Shinka..."

Teferimon's chest healed quickly as he gained a brand new set of spike-covered armor over top of his old set. His face was still hidden under a helmet, but he certainly looked more bulked up and imposing.

"MORPHLINGMON!!!"

"This is the light gained by being a Hikari Chosen... the light Hieshi didn't have when forced to evolve to Ultimate by Desire..." Jeska said. Then she turned to DeathXmon. "Our light will exterminate your darkness!!!"

"Morphlingmon?" asked DeathXmon, almost sarcastically. "You look almost as weak as your last form. Don't you understand that I am a god!? Common folk Digimon like you cannot hope to defeat me!"

A cheer of approval came from the demon Digimon behind DeathXmon, who figured his propaganda speech had worked. Jeska and Morphlingmon stayed silent, as if they were in a determined trance. Seraphimon appeared behind them.

"You are not a god, old friend," Seraphimon told him. "Underestimating the powers of a Digimon/human combination will be your downfall. Your plan to destroy the lower sectors and gain yourself power will not succeed."

"Who are you to talk?! You don't even fight your own battles!"

"Perhaps that is how I will win," replied Seraphimon, confidently. He nodded at Morphlingmon, who nodded back.

"Fine! I'll skewer both you and your new friends! DEATH SPEAR!!!"

DeathXmon hurled the same spear of darkness directly at Seraphimon, but Morphlingmon had other plans. He held out his hand and cried out.

"INVULNERABILITY!!!"

The spear fizzled out when it neared Seraphimon, hitting some unseen force. DeathXmon gasped, wondering what had just happened.

"An invisible barrier? That won't stop me! FLAILING DARKNESS!!!"

DeathXmon hurled more dark lumps aimed at all three of them, but none of them made it past the invisible barrier Morphlingmon had erected. He lowered his hand, switching off the barrier. Then he morphed his molecules into the first powerful Digimon he could remember seeing: Destromon!!!

The huge robot Digimon towered far above DeathXmon and his minions. In fact, he rivaled the spires themselves in height. DeathXmon's jaw dropped when he gazed upon Morphlingmon's new form.

"But-- how?! You should only be able to shift into humanoid Digimon!!!"

"I'm an Ultimate like you! I can shift into whatever I want!" shouted Morphlingmon back. "Now... either you surrender this battle... or I have an entire plethora of weapons I can unleash upon you!"

"There's no need for unnecessary bloodshed!" added Seraphimon.

Reluctantly considering all his options, DeathXmon lowered his head in defeat. Morphlingmon was glad the fight was over and returned back to his natural form. DeathXmon looked shamefully at Seraphimon, Morphlingmon, and Jeska.

"I apologize for my radical ideas..." he admitted. "I also apologize for my hateful words to you, human. Perhaps a human/Digimon combination can wield more light than any godlike Digimon."

"There's still a darkness, though..." replied Jeska. "A darkness called the Shadow. It has infested two human men and they're on their way here as we speak. I'm talking uber-powerful! But what would they want here...?"

Seraphimon and DeathXmon both glanced at each other, then at the third spire: Infinity Spire.

"Jeska..." began Seraphimon.

"Yes?"

"Do you know what Infinity Spire was originally named before DarkNitemon was defeated?"

"Obviously not."

"It was called Shadow Spire," finished DeathXmon. "The plaguing virus called the Shadow was created by DarkNitemon in that very construct."

"And if two servants of the Shadow are coming to it..." gasped Seraphimon in realization.

"Then we could be dealing with a much bigger threat than Irvine and Lunn!" exclaimed Jeska. "Wherever Amara is... I know she's got something to do with this! I need to find her!!!"

Suddenly, a wormhole appeared not far from them on the circuit board. Earnest, Hieshi, Leila, and Rievermon were shot out of it and collapsed onto the metallic floor. Jeska sweat dropped.

"I ask for Amara, I get these two. Go figure."


	27. Underwater Fortress Surfaces!

-1"Where the hell am I...?"

Ace couldn't exactly feel anything in his body. He groaned weakly and tried to lift his head, but his neck had no strength. He tried to move his arms and legs except that even if he had any stamina, they were chained to a wall.

"Have I... been drugged...?"

"Yes," answered a clear, strong voice that sounded as if it was coming from in front of him. He recognized it instantly as Dean Rathjen, also known now as Cannondramon. "Drugged and beaten severely. You won't be going anywhere for a while, Sam."

"It's... Ace... you bastard..."

"Whatever. I just go by the name that goes out on your grades that I have to sign every semester. Although I have a feeling that you won't be attending RTC ever again, 'Ace'."

"The others...will find me. They know where your... little hideout... is."

"No they don't. But they will soon. The whole public will soon see the fortress that Irvine, Green, Lunn, and myself built."

"So where... are we...?"

"In an underwater fortress, located directly in the lake in the heart of Tamur. And soon I'll draw the remainder of the Hikari Chosen here to join you in death. But until then, you and Tori will prove your worth as hostages."

"You... can't... win..."

"I already have won. Farewell, Ace. We won't meet again."

Ace heard mechanical doors shut and Rathjen was now gone. He tried to look around the room to spot Tori, but he still couldn't see anything. He gave up and decided to just hang there... and pray.

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Six: Underwater Fortress Surfaces! /u /b 

Ray Stryker had just finished his History exam and was fuming over the low grade he'd gotten on it. Staring at him on his grade sheet was a big fat D that seemed to laugh mockingly at him.

"I hate History," he grumbled, pulling a key out of his pocket to unlock his dorm room door. He crushed the paper with his free hand as he opened the door and stepped inside.

"Yo Ray!" shouted DemiDevimon, who was perched on his lamp upside down like the bat he is. "How goes education?!"

"Shut up. I'm taking a shower."

"So you didn't do well, huh? Well that's okay! You can study more to fail a little bit better next time!"

Ray slammed the bathroom door in response and DemiDevimon rolled his eyes, turning away from the door to look out the open window.

"Yeesh, no sense of humor--" he started to mutter to himself. He then noticed a familiar body flying towards the window. "Zephyrmon?! What the hell!?"

Zephyrmon crashed through the window, as if she were hurt. She collapsed onto Ray's floor and dropped an unconscious DemiTyrannomon next to her on the ground. DemiDevimon leapt off the lamp and landed on the floor in front of Zephyrmon.

"What happened?!"

"Ugh... Rathjen captured Tori and Ace... I didn't know who else to turn to..." groaned Zephyrmon, coughing from pain and she slowly reverted back to her child form of Salamon and lay on the floor next to DemiTyrannomon. Ray poked his head out the bathroom door, wondering what the commotion was.

"DemiDevimon, what the hell happened?!"

"You need a new window."

- - -

Ray darted down the hallway and ran to Arik's dorm room, pounding on the door. After bouncing up and down excitedly for about two minutes, no one answered. He growled in frustration and sped across the hall to Ali's door, ran face-first into it, and collapsed backwards onto the hallway floor.

"Ow... if that didn't qualify as a knock then I don't know what does..."

No one answered at Ali's room either. Sighing in defeat he ran down the stairs to search the classes for them. After interrupting about twenty, he determined they were no where in RTC.

"Crap! How am I supposed to take Rathjen by myself... where the heck are they?"

Ray headed down to the cafeteria and saw Coach Wilson getting a plate of food from the strange cafeteria lady. He dashed over there, nearly scaring Coach Wilson and making him drop all his food.

"Whoa there Ray! What's the big hurry?"

"Have you seen Arik or Nathan?!"

"Uhh... not that I can recall. Why?" he inquired.

Ray screamed, extremely agitated and turned and ran out the doorway into the outside air. Coach Wilson stared on in disbelief.

"Just when I thought that little freak couldn't get any weirder..."

- - -

Meanwhile at Lee, Nathan, and Ace's house, Arik and Nathan were happily sitting on the couch playing video games without the slightest clue as to what was going on. Ali was watching the screen from the kitchen as they played, getting dizzy from the flashing lights.

"How can you guys play that for so long?" she asked, rubbing her eyes while trying to keep track of who was killing who.

"It's called being male," answered Nathan. "Me, Arik, Ace, and Lee have played for 34 hours straight once."

"And I thought I had no life..." groaned Ali, going to get something to drink out of the fridge. "Do you guys have ANYTHING healthy to drink?"

"I just told you we're male."

Ali sighed, figuring Sprite was the closest thing to healthy in their fridge. Her thoughts drifted back to events of yesterday where Lee had left to Trinity Server. They hadn't heard from him since and it was really starting to get to her.

"What if those scientist freaks defeated them?" she murmured to herself. "We'd never know..."

"Ah! I died!" groaned Arik, throwing his controller onto the ground in defeat. "You score again."

"Which is hopefully what Ace is doing right now," said Nathan, grinning. Ali rolled her eyes and walked into the living room, sitting on the couch with them.

"Is all you guys think about is sex?"

"Of course! Because we're--"

"Male. I know," she groaned, sipping her Sprite. "But at least one of you is different."

"You talking about Lee? Cuz back when he was dating Alex he made the same bet with us that Ace did," said Arik. Ali almost spit her drink out.

"What?! Well... Alex was a whore."

"And you're pregnant."

"Hey, I can kill you Arik..." threatened Ali.

Suddenly they were interrupted with what sounded like someone bashing their head into the door and then pressing the doorbell about 5 times in a row. They all looked at each other.

"Uh... I'll get it?" said Arik, unsure of himself. He went to the door and opened it up to see Ray there, panting heavily while gasping for air. "Ray! ... what's up?"

Ali and Nathan craned their heads back over the couch to see what was going on as Ray almost fell forward out of exhaustion. Luckily for him, Arik caught him.

"Did you run all the way here?" asked Arik.

"Rathjen has Ace and Tori!" he blurted between gasps for air. "They're dead meat if we don't do something!"

"What?!" exclaimed Arik, Nathan, and Ali at once.

"Guess that means Ace isn't scoring," commented Nathan.

"Do you know where he took them?" asked Ali.

"I'm not sure," sighed Ray. "I'm sorry I can't be of more help... but I knew I needed to find you guys before I even attempted looking."

"That's right," Arik told him.

"Hey Arik, Ray!" shouted Nathan from the living room. "Look at this!"

The two joined Nathan and Ali, who had turned the TV from video games to the news. On the news was a very shocking sight.

"... and in the latest of this series of strange phenomena in our city, this latest one is the most puzzling. A large fortress appears to have risen up from the depths of the lake and is hovering an estimated twenty meters above its surface. Any attempts by aircraft or weapons nearing the fortress has resulted in their circuits shorting out and explosion. Please keep away and evacuate the area as we investigate further. This is Karen--"

Nathan shut the TV off and looked at the others.

"If that's not a clue then I don't know what is."

- - -

As fast as they could, Arik, Nathan, Ali, and Ray got to the edge of the lake to get an up close look at the fortress along with their partners. The thing looked much larger than it did on television and also very intimidating.

"That thing is huge! It's probly as big as city hall if not bigger!" exclaimed Nathan.

It was all a very dark green color and shiny as well, as if indicating it was made of metal. Probably heavily armored metal at that. There were no specific marks about it except for some large Plexiglas windows and the entire top of it was railed. Meaning that it was likely intended to be some sort of deck or coliseum. Water was still running down its' surface and dripping back into the lake from which it came.

"I'm sensing alot of Shadow data..." Bouncemon told them from his vantage point on top of Arik's head. Kotemon, Octopimon, and DemiDevimon seemed to acknowledge his comment.

"Great, I'm guessing Rathjen is aboard that thing, which means Ace and Tori must be as well," stated Ray, pointing at it.

"With our luck we'll run into Desiree and Tammy too," groaned Arik. "Without our main powerhouses like Lee, Hieshi, and Ace... how can we win?"

"We can and we will," said Nathan, as if there was no way they could lose. "We're not weak. We don't have to depend on them for every little thing."

"History proves different," countered Ali. "Think of ONE battle we haven't won without their help."

Nathan opened his mouth to speak but quickly closed it again. She was right. Every major battle they'd fought were won by the aforementioned three Chosen. The only person he'd ever defeated was Jeska... and that was nothing to brag about.

"We can do this!" he told them, trying to boost morale. "When Lee gets back do you want him to find out that Rathjen leveled Tamur and killed us all? No, I didn't think so. So let's do this!!!"

"Right!" agreed the other three in unison, boosted by his speech.

"Bouncemon Shinka... Racermon!!! Racermon Shinka... TECHAMON!!!"

"Kotemon Shinka... Musyamon!!! Musyamon Shinka... CHAOSMON!!!"

"Octopimon Shinka... MegaOctopimon!!! MegaOctopimon Shinka... ULTRAOCTOPIMON!!!"

"DemiDevimon Shinka... IceDevimon!!! IceDevimon Shinka... MARINEDEVIMON!!"

Nathan overlooked their small force sitting in the middle of the street.

"Well aren't we a team of all Perfects. Ali, why don't you bio-merge?"

"I can't just bio-merge at any given time," she told him. "Do you know how draining that is?"

"Whatever," he groaned. "Let's go, people!"

Chaosmon picked up Nathan and took to the air, while all the others rode on MarineDevimon's shoulders as he dove into the lake. They were all headed for the fortress.

"Remember, priority is getting Ace and Tori out of there!" Nathan shouted back to them.

"Oh yeah?" asked Ray. "Tell that to HIM!!!"

Ray pointed at the fortress again, and they could see Rathjen standing atop it behind the railing. His arms were crossed and he was grinning smugly. The squadron of Hikari Chosen stopped moving and faced him.

"Like flies led into the spider web, you come," he said to them. "How predictable."

"Only cuz you've got some of our friends!" yelled Nathan. "Give them back now!!!"

"So demanding, Mr. Klentz," replied Rathjen. "I think I'll keep your pathetic friends and feed them to ArcaDemon."

"Oh you're pushing it!" shouted Arik, getting pissed as well. "Techamon, get him!"

Techamon darted off MarineDevimon's back and leapt onto the top of the fortress with Rathjen. Nathan and Chaosmon flew down next to them.

"Ali, you come with me," he told her. "Arik, do you think you and Ray can hold Rathjen off while we free Ace and Tori?"

"Are you insane?!" exclaimed Arik and Ray at once.

"I'll take that as a yes," said Nathan. "Let's go, Ali."

Ali hopped on UltraOctopimon and she bounded at the side of the fortress, using her suction cup feet to grip its edge. Nathan and Chaosmon hovered over in front of it.

"Think you can break that?" asked Ali.

"I'm damn sure," replied Chaosmon. "CHAOS FLARE!!!"

Chaosmon blasted a fireball from his palm at the side of the armored fortress, making a fair sized hole in its side. UltraOctopimon bashed it with her tentacles, making it bigger.

"Beautiful," said Nathan. The four of them headed inside to search for Ace and Tori. Ray and Arik, still standing atop MarineDevimon, sweat dropped.

"I don't think Nathan is a good leader," said Ray. "He left US to deal with Rathjen."

"Yeah... he's about that smart," added Arik.

Atop the fortress, Techamon had landed a few meters away from Rathjen. The green warrior drew his sword and pointed it at the maniacal dean.

"Your injustices will be paid for today," said Techamon.

"You're an inferior creature from an inferior world. Don't attempt to lecture me."

"Grr... TECH SABER!!!" yelled Techamon, preparing to gouge his sword into Rathjen. Rathjen practically exploded in Shadow data before the sword could touch him, sending Techamon skidding a couple dozen meters along the smooth surface of the fortress.

He glanced up and was now faced with the large dinosaur/machine hybrid that was Cannondramon. Rathjen laughed manically in his Digimon form.

"You fool! You're only a Perfect!" gloated Rathjen.

"What exactly is it that you want?!" demanded Arik.

"I don't really WANT anything," answered Rathjen, turning his large body to face Arik, Ray, and MarineDevimon. "I'm content with causing mindless destruction. You see when Desiree enlisted me among the others to serve her, they all had some sort of goal."

Rathjen continued on speaking.

"Green figured he'd find a way to cure his wife, he was noble but stupid. You already saw the fruits of his failure when Lee destroyed BlackWarGreymon. Lunn was searching for a way to channel his mastery of karate into a more powerful form... and he found it. I'm sure that Lee and the others will soon encounter the terror that is his Digimon form."

"I wonder what the hell Lunn is..." muttered Arik.

"Irvine wanted to research Trinity Server and discover everything about it. He is simply an explorer on the wrong side of the law, thanks to Desiree. I'm the only truly... oh how do you say it... evil one. I joined for the intent of becoming Cannondramon and leveling this pathetic city!"

"Why?!" inquired Ray.

"Why not? I hate my life, I hate my job, you could say I've had the typical horrid life. My parents died when I was little, I never fit in at school, blah blah blah. You don't care, really. Right now your main concern is how to stop me from annihilating you! Which by the way... you can't do!"

"You're insane!" shouted Arik.

"Oh do shut up. This base..." he said, stomping his large dinosaur foot on it to signal what he was talking about. "Was built to keep the Digimon army that we're going to create."

"What Digimon army?"

"Oh I have to explain everything today, don't I? Well I suppose it doesn't matter since you'll be sinking to a watery grave soon enough. Irvine and Lunn went to obtain the power of a being who can give us much, MUCH more Shadow data than Desiree has. Once they use the key: Amara to get that power, we'll infect the minds of millions of Digimon and unleash them upon this planet!"

"... how is Amara the key?"

"Now that's a secret."

- - -

Inside the base, Ace was finally aware of his surroundings in the holding cell he was located in. Glancing around, it was just a plain metal room with only a door leading the outside. Tori was chained to the wall by her arms next to him.

"Tori... your arms numb too?"

"Oh yeah."

Ace sighed and stared at the floor. There really wasn't much they could do even with the effects of the drugs wearing off.

"I'm sorry we didn't beat Rathjen..." he told her sadly. "I tried my hardest to protect you, but he was just too smart."

"It's alright Ace," she replied. "I couldn't have done any better. I just hope Zephyrmon managed to tell the others where we are."

"What if they never find us?"

"Let's not think like that," Tori said. "By the way, Rathjen did a really crappy job locking us up."

"What do you mean?"

Tori thrusted both of her arms forward and her wrists managed to break free of the chains binding them. She collapsed forward onto the floor, rubbing her red wrists and allowing the blood to begin flowing into her arms again.

"Awesome job Tori!" Ace cheered.

Tori was about to agree when suddenly an alarm sounded. The holding cell began to flash red from alarm klaxons flaring.

"What's going on!?" exclaimed Tori.

"Your escape must've triggered something!"

Suddenly, panels near the roof opened up and water began pouring into the room! Tori and Ace both screamed in fright. Tori ran for the door and pounded on it, but of course it was locked. Ace's eyes widened.

"Holy crap! Someone had better find us soon!"

- - -

Back outside, Rathjen was finally finished making speeches to Arik and Ray, who were doing their job. They had kept him occupied this long, giving Nathan and Ali more time to free the others.

"I think he's finally done talking..." Arik whispered to Ray. "We're going to have to keep him busy via mortal combat now."

"I love that game."

"And now that you know everything - almost everything - I'd say that much knowledge is too much for you simpletons to handle," said Rathjen, charging the dual cannons on his back. "So it's time to swim. GRENADE STORM!!!"

Rathjen fired two grenades out of the cannons and they hit MarineDevimon, who was unable to dodge! He was launched backwards into the water, causing a huge splash in his wake! Arik and Ray were thrown recklessly off of him and landed elsewhere in the lake!

"Arik! Ray!" cried Techamon, still atop the fortress. "Argh! TECH SABER!!!"

The warrior Digimon ran at Rathjen, but Rathjen simply smashed him with his tail, sending him flying clear off of the fortress! Techamon crashed down into the waters below.

"Ahahaha! You're short a couple dozen brain cells if you think you're able to handle me!"

"DARK DELUGE!!!" bellowed MarineDevimon, who had righted himself and began lobbing dark energy blasts at Rathjen.

Rathjen took a couple hits and staggered backwards from them. He then began laughing again, safe up on his little fortress.

"DINO CANNON!!!"

MarineDevimon was hit yet again and screamed before collapsing forward into the water. Ray and Arik, who had managed to swim back to the shore, gasped.

"Good god..." groaned a soaked Ray. "We'll never beat that guy! We can't win!"

"Quit being negative!" Arik told him, draining the water out of his shirt. "What would Lee do in this situation?"

"Win."

"Oh, that's helpful. Come on, he's just a huge, Shadow-powered dinosaur with large cannons, insane, and on top of a flying armored fortress," Arik told him.

"Yes. He's like a pony. I want to pet him."

"Sarcasm is not applicable to this situation."

- - -

Ali, Nathan, and their partners ran down through what seemed like a never ending hallway in their search for Ace and Tori. Every door they came to, UltraOctopimon or Chaosmon would smash it down... but they found nothing.

"How big IS this place?!" exclaimed Ali. "I feel like we could be searching for days!"

"We don't have days!" growled Nathan, single-minded in his quest to find his best friend. "Arik and Ray can't hold off Rathjen for long! For all we know they could've lost by now!"

"Hey, the hallway is finally ending..." pointed out Ali as she noticed a large steel door in front of them. MegaOctopimon and Chaosmon leapt down in front of it.

"INK SHOCK!!!"

"CHAOS FLARE!!!"

They dented the door severely with their duo attack. One more shot and the door was blown inwards, clattering on the metal floor of the large room it led into. Chaosmon flew in first.

"Intruder alert!" shouted an electronic voice as alarms began to go off. A large wall-mounted cannon appeared out of nowhere and blasted Chaosmon! He was sent tumbling to the floor, gripping his chest in pain.

"Chaosmon!" screamed Nathan.

"Nathan, don't look now but it's targeting us next!" shouted Ali in fright.

It fired a laser directly at them but UltraOctopimon countered it with a water pulse from her mouth! She applied pressure to fight the blast, but another cannon then lowered itself from the roof!

"Look out!" warned Ali.

"CHAOS FLARE!!!" bellowed Chaosmon, blasting the roof-mounted cannon to scrap. still holding his chest with his right arm, he lowered his left arm at the cannon UltraOctopimon was tussling with and blew it out of the wall!

"Let's keep searching," Nathan told them, running for the next door.

- - -

"Give up yet boys?" asked Rathjen, still in his Cannondramon form atop the fortress. He was looking down on them like they were nothing. Arik and Ray glanced around... both their partners were floating unconscious in the water. "If you surrender and admit I'm your superior, I might just let Desiree turn you into Yami Chosen instead of me killing you. You're good students, you know that's the smart thing to do."

"Not on your life," growled Ray. "I'm never... EVER... going down that path again. They manipulated the emotions I felt for my brother's death and turned me into a fighting machine..."

"Don't worry," Arik told him. "I've been around alot longer than you and I've picked up a trick or two that I haven't used for over a year."

"Like what?"

"Like THIS! Techamon!!!" screamed Arik. Techamon seemed to silently respond to Arik's cry by beginning to glow with energy. All the water around Techamon burst away and he was standing on solid ground as he began to evolve.

"Techamon Shinka..."

Techamon transformed from his green, warrior self into a much stronger angelic warrior. He was covered in red roman armor and had six large red wings protruding from his back. He hovered upwards, allowing the water he separated to crash back down again.

"DESTINMON!!!"

"Wow..." gasped Ray. "That Digimon looks awesome!"

"And I didn't before?" asked Destinmon, who apparently heard him. Rathjen scoffed at his new opponent.

"Destinmon, eh? I'm not impressed! I already took down an Ultimate earlier today! I'm sure I can do it again!"

"Are you REALLY sure?" inquired Destinmon. "Perhaps you're still fatigued from your earlier battle."

"You lie!" snarled Rathjen. "With the Shadow being the basis of my power... I never get tired!"

"The Shadow is the wrong place to get your power. You'll lose because we get ours from the light!" Arik shouted. "Show him, Destinmon!"

"I've heard enough! Grenade Storm!!!" bellowed Rathjen. But his act was in haste and he was not considering Destinmon's power. Destinmon simply flapped his wings in the direction of the grenades, sending them back at Rathjen!

"What?!" exclaimed Rathjen. "Oh no!"

- - -

Inside, the whole fortress shook from the impact of Rathjen's grenades hitting him and knocking him backward. Nathan and Ali nearly fell over.

"What the hell was that?!" exclaimed Nathan.

"The fight must be getting rough out there!" shouted Ali. "Maybe you should go back and help them!"

"No! Ace and Tori first!"

Meanwhile, inside the holding cell; Ace and Tori were already up to their chests in water! And it was rising fast! Both of them had tried everything they could think of to get out of the cell but it was hopeless. They both had that wonderful sense of impending doom.

"Looks like this is it..." sighed Tori. "We're going to drown..."

"Tori... there has to be some way..." began Ace. Then he came up with an idea to save her. "Stand on my shoulders."

"What?!"

"If you can stand on my shoulders and grab onto those bars on the roof, you might be able to climb out through one of the vents that's pouring water in the room!"

"But... what about you!?"

"I'll die happy knowing I saved you," he said, glancing downwards through the H2O at the floor.

"No! I'm not leaving you!"

"But--"

"ACE!!!" they heard someone scream. They looked to see Nathan's worried face in the window of the door. Ace and Tori jumped with joy upon seeing him.

"About damn time!" yelled Ace back. "Get us outta here!"

Chaosmon teleported inside and hovered in front of Ace and Tori. He extended his hands down to them.

"One rescue operation, would you like fries with that?" asked Chaosmon. Ace and Tori smiled and grabbed the demon's hands. He teleported them back out to the others. Nathan jumped on Ace to give him a hug.

"Holy shit man, that was close!"

"Stop hugging me please."

Chaosmon made sure they were all touching him and then teleported them out of the mobile fortress.

- - -

"I'm not through yet!" groaned Rathjen, bringing his heavy body back to it's feet. Destinmon leapt down in front of him.

"Oh yes you are! ANGEL KICK!!!" yelled Destinmon, kicking Rathjen and sending him sliding across the deck. He teetered on the edge of the water and gasped.

"No... not you!"

MarineDevimon was waiting right on that edge for him and grinned widely.

"Yes, me. Take a swim."

MarineDevimon grabbed Rathjen with his claws and hurled him over his back into the water. The Cannondramon form was part machine, so when it touched the water...

"That's one big ass explosion!!!" exclaimed Ray as Cannondramon exploded, sending water an estimated thirty feet into the air. Arik and Ray cheered just as Chaosmon appeared with Nathan, Ali, Tori, Ace, and UltraOctopimon.

"Bout time you got back," said Arik. "Destinmon, you can wipe that fortress out any time now!"

"Will do!" he shouted, flying into the air above it. MarineDevimon took the hunt and got away from it. "ANGEL FIRE!!!"

He charged up two large fireballs in each of his hands and sent them flaming down through the deck and into the fortress. It exploded from the inside and crashed back down into the depths from which it came... in pieces.

"Well I'd say we did our good deed for the day," said Ray, grinning. "So this is what it feels like to be one of the good guys."

"Ain't it the life?" said Ali. "But you know... we're not done yet."

"There's still Desiree and Tammy..." sighed Arik. That thought alone made their victory over Rathjen today seem less important. Ace took it upon himself to try and cheer them up.

"Come on guys, we just took out one third of the bad guys! Without Lee!" he told them. "Let's worry about the hot chicks later... right now I just wanna sleep for a week."

"What do you mean 'we'?" asked Ali. "You didn't do anything."

"I... uh... let's just go home."

The six of them turned and walked away from the wreckage site. Their partners returned to Child form and followed.

"So Ace, what's it like being a hostage?" asked Arik.

"Oh it's beautiful. Wanna try it sometime?"

As they left, Rathjen swam to the shore and gasped for air as he collapsed onto the ground. He was now stripped of his Shadow data and his fortress... but he was still alive.

"I will not be humiliated like this... like Green was... I'll have my revenge!"


	28. Poisonous Choices

-1"What the heck is it?" wondered Hieshi.

Hieshi noticed the statue of Amara centered in the middle of Alpha Server, where he was along with Earnest and Jeska. Alpha Server was set up like a small triangle circuit board set up in the middle of a virtual cyberspace. It was the core of Trinity Server, and where Seraphimon and DeathXmon resided.

The two godlike creatures had retreated to Hikari Spire to discuss things about Infinity Spire and left the three Chosen and their partners outside. Alpha Server was, unlike the other Servers, completely safe.

"Uhh... that would be their savior," said Jeska, approaching it as well. "I know it looks like Amara, but Seraphimon said it probably is nothing more than coincidence."

Earnest, Leila, Rievermon, and Morphlingmon walked up behind them. Leila (still in her Ultimate form of WarRenamon) knelt down to read the inscription.

"What do you think?" asked Earnest.

"I think it's great craftsmanship," replied Hieshi, still staring at it. Jeska groaned and covered Hieshi's eyes with her hand.

"I was asking Leila," Earnest told him, slightly annoyed.

"It's... it's a familiar event to me," she said, trying to gather her thoughts. "The Shadow did originate in that Spire over there... and I was involved in fighting them..."

"I remember hearing about that," agreed Rievermon.

"Is it Amara?" asked Earnest, being more specific this time.

"I... I cannot tell. I have never actually encountered Amara before," replied Leila. "You have to bring her to me so I can compare her radiance with the radiance I remember from the holy being that expelled the Shadow."

"But we don't know where Amara is... she's either with Lee or still with the scientists..." Jeska said. "Either way we'll get her."

"If her and Lee are alive," added Hieshi, his eyes still covered by Jeska's hand. Jeska and Hieshi gave him a what-the-hell-is-wrong-with-you look.

"That some wonderful optimism there," said Jeska.

"Hey, I never asked to be part of your little team. I got drafted."

"They're alive... we just have to wait..." began Earnest. "And hope they get here before Irvine..."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Seven: Poisonous Choices /u /b 

One level below Alpha Server is Beta Server. Beta Server is different from the others simply because it's a civilization. Residing on the same circuit board set-up as Alpha Server except much larger and much more populated. It was set up like a large metropolitan city where the streets were bustling with Digimon going about their day.

... or it was.

"Oh my god Lee..." gasped Amara, mortified by the sight she, Lee, Kokuwamon, and Emeraldmon appeared into. The city was in ruins; buildings on fire, everything smashed, and dead Digimon littering the streets. They were all deleting slowly.

"What could've happened?" asked Amara.

"It was Irvine and Lunn," growled Lee. "I know it was."

"They left their victims to die... didn't even delete them fully..." gasped Kokuwamon from in Lee's arms where he was being held. "Horrible... simply horrible."

"Look at them all..." began Emeraldmon, pointing out various Digimon. "They killed Baby, Child, all the way to Ultimate Digimon. Heartless! And how insanely powerful!"

"Irvine wasn't that strong," Lee told them. "Machinedramon and I tussled with him earlier, remember? We beat him easily."

"Well obviously it wasn't Irvine then," said Emeraldmon. "It must have been Lunn who did this."

Lee and Amara silently agreed, but they were too depressed to speak any more. They all knew they had to get through here as quickly as possible and make it to the final level of Trinity Server. They trekked along the streets, luckily most of the Digimon had deleted by now so they didn't have to witness too much death.

i Ugh... thinking about this is very intimidating, /i thought Lee. i Could Lunn really be this powerful? /i 

i You're worried about that too? /i 

i You know Amara, it's really annoying walking around with a telepath. /i 

i ... sorry. /i 

Amara sighed, knowing that was going to help her score points with Lee. She figured she'd just try to keep her mind to herself.

i It's becoming rather hard for me to control my telepathy all of a sudden... now that I have telekinesis too, I have two powers to balance. And telekinesis is definitely one to keep in check, so my mind keeps wandering into Lee's-- /i 

"Humans! More humans!" they heard a voice yell. The four of them froze in their tracks.

"They won't take us alive!!!" yelled another one.

Lee and Amara glanced upwards as there were two Digimon standing on the roofs of buildings on either side of the road they were walking on. Both of them looked infuriated.

"Who the heck are they?!" exclaimed Amara.

"The one on the left is Beelzemon," Emeraldmon told her. "The one on the right is Jijimon. Both of them are Ultimates!"

The demon Digimon in leather, Beelzemon, pointed an accusing finger down at them.

"You won't take us alive, you human blaggards!"

"We'll stop you here! You'll kill no more innocent Digimon!" added Jijimon, the old man Digimon on the right. The two of them jumped down onto the street in front of the party, looking ready to battle.

"Do they look familiar to you, Lee?" asked Kokuwamon. Lee did a double-check on them.

"Hey yeah, they do!" he exclaimed. "Jijimon! Beelzemon! Don't you remember me? Lee Trainer!"

Beelzemon and Jijimon stopped their battle preparations and glanced at Lee. Instantly, Jijimon dropped his cane and Beelzemon dropped his gun.

"Lee? Could it really be you?" asked Jijimon in disbelief. "My stars, it IS you!"

Lee and Kokuwamon nodded, while Amara just looked stumped.

"Mind clueing me in?"

"What? You're not just gonna read my mind?" joked Lee. "Yeah these are Jijimon and Beelzemon, the former partners of Kevin and Desiree. Kevin was one of our friends from the first group last year."

"YOU were Desiree's partner?" asked Amara, pointed at Beelzemon. Beelzemon nodded.

"Desiree's D-Volver was destroyed by that damn Shadow and I was warped back here," growled Beelzemon, angrily. "I haven't seen her since."

"Ohhh you don't wanna see her now," said Amara. "She's bloated with Shadow-filled evil."

Beelzemon grabbed Amara by the shoulders and began to shake her.

"You! You two have to promise me you'll save her! She's been through enough in her life!"

Amara and Lee looked at each other skeptically. Lee shrugged in response.

"Uh... we'll try," she told him. i I guess I never knew Desiree before she was so evil... but this Beelzemon seems to think highly of her... /i 

"So Jijimon... what the hell happened here?" wondered Lee. Jijimon hung his bearded head in despair.

"It was awful... two humans came here and attracted alot of attention by the natives. One Ogremon accosted them... and that's when things got ugly."

Beelzemon continued on after him.

"One of them... the one with the grey moustache transformed into a Digimon himself."

"That would be Lunn," said Lee and Amara in unison. Both of them were correct about who did this.

"Needless to say..." began Jijimon. "He did a number on this place and slaughtered almost every Digimon in sight. Few of us were lucky to survive. The other human seemed less interested in fight than in how Digimon delete. Obviously they were trying to get into the next Server, but our leader wouldn't give them the key so they killed him as well."

"So how do you get into Alpha Server then?" inquired Amara.

"All they have to do is find the backup portal, but it is well-hidden. They are probably still in this Server searching for it," Jijimon explained. "I pray we don't run into them again."

"What do you think they'll do in Alpha Server...?" pondered Amara. She shrugged, unable to answer her own question.

"The holy ones: DeathXmon and Seraphimon should be able to handle them," said Beelzemon. "We can take you the backup portal tomorrow morning if you want to go there."

"Yes that would be ideal," agreed Lee. "But why not right now?"

"With those fiends running about, it would be wise to remain indoors at night. Come, we'll show you to the secret bunker."

Jijimon and Beelzemon turned, heading the other way. Lee, Amara, Kokuwamon, and Emeraldmon followed them. They went inside one building and activated a hidden switch behind a desk. The floor opened up and an elevated platform ascended.

"Funky," said Amara. They all stepped on and lowered themselves to safety.

- - -

Meanwhile, Lunn and Irvine were indeed still in Beta Server searching for the final gateway. They were strolling along the streets in their human forms, checking every building they came across for it.

"Argh, Irvine this is hopeless! We need to find the portal!" growled Lunn. "I have little patience for this hide-and-seek!"

"Well perhaps if you didn't kill almost every Digimon we could find it easier. Now they've all retreated underground and we don't even know how to get down there."

"I wanted to test my fighting prowess..." Lunn told him, flexing his wrists. "But they were all weak. Even the Ultimates were weak. I need to find a true opponent."

"Yes, whatever," agreed Irvine, rolling his eyes when Lunn wasn't looking. "Just make sure you leave some Digimon for us to infest with Shadow data once we unlock DarkNitemon's power."

"I keep telling you I don't care about that. I follow Desiree only because she can take my power away. I just want to be strong."

"You are strong. But even the strongest of us need rest. Why don't we resume our search come morning?" asked Irvine, yawning.

"Sleep is for the weak."

"Well I'm going to hole up somewhere. Keep searching if you want to and notify me if you find anything."

"Affirmative."

- - -

Lee and Amara were put up in a small bedroom somewhere out of the way in the secret bunker. The bunker was packed with Digimon refugees, so they were glad to have any hospitality at all. Kokuwamon and Emeraldmon were sent somewhere else.

"Man, Jijimon and Beelzemon are sure nice Digimon..." said Amara. Lee nodded.

"You know, I never thought I'd see them again. Sometimes it's nice to see old friends. But... we can't take them back to the real world with us because Desiree is psycho and Kevin moved."

"That's too bad..." sighed Amara, noting there was only one bed in the room. It didn't look too comfy, but it appeared to have room for two people on it. "So... we sharing a bed?"

"You're joking, right?"

"Nope."

"I'll sleep on the floor. You can have the bed," offered Lee. "Just throw me a pillow."

Lee sat down on the floor. It was really hard, made of metal like everything else was in these higher sectors. He grumbled and actually contemplated sleeping up there with Amara.

i Just because I sleep in the same bed with her doesn't mean anything has to happen... I'm faithful to Ali and I know that. /i 

Lee turned to face Amara and was hit in the face with a pillow.

"There you go," she told him, whipping the blankets into the air. Lee stood up and sighed.

"Alright... I'll sleep up there. But my head is going where your feet are," he said.

"Have it your way," she told him, feigning disinterest. He hopped under the covered and fluffed up his pillow at the opposite side of the bed Amara's head was on. He couldn't see her grinning.

i This is my chance! We're alone in a completely foreign world with no Ali. It's like god is on my side. /i 

"What was that noise?" asked Lee.

"Just me unzipping my pants. It's too hot in here to sleep with them on."

Lee's eyes widened and he buried his head in his pillow. No WAY was this happening to him!

i Must not look. Must not look. Must not-- well... maybe a small peek. Ali will never know. Amara will never know. /i 

i Oh yes I will, /i she thought to herself, reading his thoughts at this particular moment.

Lee opened one of his eyes, looking under the covers at her cheetah-print thong that didn't leave much to the imagination. Satisfied, he buried his head back into the pillow.

i There I looked! Damn is she fine... but I have a girlfriend! A PREGNANT girlfriend. I can't sleep like this! Must think unsexy thoughts! Pumpkins! ArcaDemon! Ace in a cheetah-print thong! Ok there we go. Arousal averted. /i 

i Alright, he's stronger willed than I thought, /i observed Amara. i Most other guys would've cracked by now. Hmmm... am I doing this just because I'm horny or because I like Lee? Maybe it's both. Time to step it up a notch. /i 

"Damn it..." he heard Amara mutter. "Leg cramp..."

Amara stretched her left leg high into the air, revealing her area of glory completely to Lee as she 'stretched her leg'. Lee was literally going insane at this moment... and he knew there was only one thing he could ask.

"Amara..."

"Yes?"

"Are you trying to seduce me? God knows you've tried it before."

"Is it working this time?"

Lee let out a small dog-like whimper. Amara grinned. She was doing this more for the amusement of torturing Lee now than trying to win him over.

i Now it's time to use power number one, /i she thought to herself. i All I gotta do is keep sending mental subliminal messages to Lee to change his priorities. It won't be HIS fault if he fools around with me, and that way he's still loyal to Ali. And I get off. Fair? Fair. /i 

"See? That's what you get for tying yourself down with Ali..." she told him. "Ali is sweet girl... but I'm sure I'm more your type. We're both physically active and even more interesting: we're rivals. We always compete."

"So you say this is a competition... in where you're competing with me for... me. I'm lost."

"As you should be. It's the way of the woman," she told him. i Time for power number two. Let's see if I can put this telekinesis to good use... /i 

Using her telekinetic powers, she slowly moved Lee's hand along the bed until it was touching her crotch. Lee sighed happily and rubbed it with his fingers before he realized what was going on.

"WAH! AMARA! Don't do that!!!" he exclaimed, jumping out of bed and smashing his head against the wall and falling forwards back onto the bed. He groaned and rubbed his head, very woozy now. Amara just giggled.

"Bravo Lee. You successfully avoiding finger banging me to give yourself a concussion."

"Ugh... can't see straight..." he groaned. "You win... I guess if it will make you shut up and you promise NEVER to tell Ali."

"I promise."

"Why do I not trust you?"

"At this point you don't care," she told him, using her telepathy to give him mental suggestions in her direction again.

Groggy from smashing his head and susceptible, Lee grabbed Amara and kissed her. She pulled him under the covers as his hands began to explore the hallowed regions underneath her black t-shirt. He already had experience with this and was making Amara tremble with pleasure as he rubbed her breasts.

He then ran one hand down her smooth body underneath the small piece of cloth that covered her crotch. He began to slide two of his fingers in...

"Lee... quit fooling around down there," she told him, gripping the bed with both of her hands as she moaned.

Lee went to unzip his pants, but then shook his head rapidly.

"No! Ahh! Quit messing with my head!" he shouted, leaving his zipper alone. Amara frowned, she was so close to getting off.

"I wasn't--"

"Yes you were! Fine, I'll admit it Amara! I do like you! I've had a crush on you for a long time! Ever since we were sparring partners at Lunn's karate school! But it's because I care about Ali, and also because I care about you, that I can't do this!"

"But I want this!"

"I don't care! I've already knocked up one of the girls I care about, why go for two? Before you know it I'll be going to a hat trick!"

"But... Lee..." she pleaded. "We're ALL ALONE here! It doesn't even apply to our lives back in our world!"

"I... I need some time to think," said Lee, turning and leaving the room. Amara sighed and smacked her head calmly against the wall.

"Heh... that was fun," she said to herself. "And I got him to admit he likes me. But now he left me hanging..."

Amara looked at her right hand.

"Eh, that'll do."

- - -

"Lee!" shouted Jijimon as Lee headed for the elevator lift to travel back up to the surface. "Where are you going?"

"For a walk. I need to clear my head."

"All alone?" asked Jijimon with concern.

"No, I have my D-Volver so I can summon Kokuwamon if I get into trouble. Don't worry about me, Jijimon."

"Alright..."

Lee returned back to the surface and walked out onto the street. The air was really nice and relaxing to breathe in. The city may have been smashed, but Lee could tell it was in a good environment before that.

"Damn Amara..." he sighed to him as he went to wander around. "She knows I like her... but I can't be with her because I'm with Ali. I'm so torn between the two. Ali does take precedence because I got her pregnant..."

He kicked a rock and it flew through a window, smashing it.

"But I've heard of guys who are still good friends with the girl they got pregnant. So I could do that and be with Amara. But then I'd want Ali. Hmmm... I gain and lose either way. But which way do I lose more...?"

"Amara and I do have more in common than Ali and I, but Ali and I have been friends since we were so little. I've even been into her mind to free her from the Shadow and I got a way better understanding of her then. I just so don't know about this."

Lee decided it would be healthy to stop talking to himself. He rounded a corner and saw a Baby Digimon laying on the street. It was still alive.

"Huh? Hey little guy! Are you alright?!"

It was a baby Tsunomon, a small bouncing ball with a large horn. It opened it's eyes weakly as it saw Lee coming.

"No...!" it pleaded weakly. "It's a trap!"

"A what?!" exclaimed Lee. Suddenly a huge shrunken; a ninja star, shot down in front of him and embedded itself in the metal of the ground. He was cut off from Tsunomon. "Who's there?!"

"Lee... don't tell me you've forgotten me already," said a familiar voice. Lee glanced up to see Lunn standing atop a building, glaring down at him. Lunn was wearing his karate outfit as usual, accompanied by his three-star black belt.

"You!" snarled Lee angrily. "You hurt all those Digimon! I can't believe I ever looked up to you! I can't believe I called you my sensei!"

"I AM your sensei, Lee. Every fighting move you know, I taught you. You should feel honored to have been taught by a man with such genius."

"Genius my foot," growled Lee. "No great man would harm innocent Digimon like Tsunomon here!"

"Lee, I can see you want to fight me. I intend to give you every opportunity to do so. But first, I'll make you an offer..."

"You can take your offer and shove it!"

"You haven't heard me out," said Lunn, wagging his finger. "I'll spare that Tsunomon and all the hiding Digimon if... you surrender Amara to me."

"What?" gasped Lee.

"Amara is my favorite student next to you, but you're too strong-willed to join with me. But think about it. One life... instead of many. Many innocent Digimon like Tsunomon."

Lee glanced at Tsunomon, who whimpered weakly. How could he allow such a sweet creature to be hurt. But on the other hand, how could he give Amara to these psychos when he just won her back? Lee just wanted to cry right now.

i I should've stayed and had sex with Amara... /i he thought. i But no, now I got a life-changing decision to make. Wonderful planning, Lee. /i 

"The clock is ticking," said Lunn. "I give you five minutes to make your decision."

i What would Lunn do to Amara if he got his hands on her? She seems to be very instrumental in the grand scheme of things... if I was to surrender her, I could be - I'm going out on a limb by guessing this - dooming us all! But if I don't, then I'll have to watch this poor Digimon suffer... /i 

"I CAN'T THINK!!!" he screaming, dropping to his knees and gripping his head. "All these fucking decisions today! Argh! Damn you Lunn!!!"

"Hmph. Exactly the reaction I was trying to get from you," said Lunn smugly. "You have three minutes."

Lee let a few tears crawl down his face and leapt off onto the steel below. He was in this situation once before when Desiree threw Alex and Ali into the ravine last year. He made the choice to save Alex and then regretted losing Ali so much that he almost killed himself.

"No matter which choice I pick... I lose," he sighed. "Why do I always get in these positions? Maybe it'd be better if I was the one who died..."

"Two minutes."

"Lunn..." began Lee. "Spare Tsunomon and spare Amara. Make ME into a Yami Chosen instead! Or kill me if you have to! I don't want anyone to suffer because of my decision!"

"I said you have option one and option two. I don't need you for anything except for the obligatory showdown between us once we make it to Alpha Server. I'm confident you will be the opponent I seek to test my skills."

"Then test them now!" shouted Lee, reaching for his D-Volver. Lunn threw another shrunken, nearly taking off Lee's hand! Lee stopped going for it.

"Touch that D-Volver and I will kill Tsunomon. You have one minute."

"How do you throw those so well?" asked Lee.

"Practice."

Lee sighed and bit his lip. He couldn't decide. Flipping a coin wouldn't help. There was no way out of this!

"Time's up," said Lunn. "Which will it be?"

"I--"

"Lunn!" bellowed a voice over his communicator. Lunn growled with annoyance and picked it up. Lee simply watched, happy this would buy him an extra few seconds.

"What do you want Irvine? I'm busy!"

"I've found the portal to Alpha Server! Come now while it's open! NOW!"

Lunn acknowledged his companion's comment and turned back to Lee. Lee was still in tears, but they were tears of hatred for his former karate master.

"You are a lucky man, Lee Trainer," Lunn told him. "I expect to have a worthy fight from you in the future. Until then, here's your motivator to fight me with everything you have!"

Lunn turned and whipped another shrunken. He hit Tsunomon and the poor baby Digimon deleted! Lee screamed in fury and reached for his D-Volver again, but Lunn threw another one, blazing Lee across the cheek! The blonde boy fell backwards from the pain as he heard Lunn's laughter fade.

"Lunn... you... bastard..." hissed Lee, clutching his cheek. There was quite alot of blood on his hand and on his right cheek. He looked at the shrunken that had killed Tsunomon.

"Tsunomon was innocent... and Lunn just murdered him. If he wants a fight... I will beat the hell out of him with my bare hands."

Lee turned and left, still clutching his cheek. He was going to get the partners and Amara, and get Jijimon to show them the way to Alpha Server. Endgame had begun.


	29. Unfinished Business

It was a solemn day for one man named Albert Green. Standing in a black tux, he glared defiantly down at a small stone slab. The slab read, in big black letters: Amanda Green; 1977-2004. Loving wife and aunt.

"Green..." said Rathjen, standing behind Green in another formal tux. The dean put his hand on his friend's shoulder. "It was cancer. There was nothing you could do."

"She can't be dead. I won't believe it," growled Green calmly.

"Believe it. These things happen."

"No, Marty!" yelled Green, flinging Rathjen's hand off of his shoulder. "It's THEIR fault! Lee and his stupid little friends! They prevented me from going to Trinity Server and finding her a cure!"

"There was no--" began Rathjen, but then he stopped in mid-speech. Green was his friend, but sometimes you have to take advantage of even your friends to get your way.

"You're right. It is their fault."

"I want revenge..." snarled Green, turning his head away from her gravestone. "I want Lee to suffer for what he did to me!"

"I also want revenge. But face it, we're just two old men now. We aren't Digimon anymore."

"Now now boys," said a third-party voice. "You COULD be Digimon again."

Green and Rathjen glanced across the graveyard to where Desiree had appeared. She was dressed in civilian clothing for once instead of her shadow covering. Her raspberry hair flocked in the wind as she spoke to them.

"But you know what they say about second chances... you only get one."

"I'll take that risk. Give me power once more!" pleaded Green. "I have nothing left to live for!!!"

Desiree nodded in agreement. She turned to Rathjen to judge his take on this, although she already knew he wanted the power back as well.

"I'll have what he's having."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Eight: Unfinished Business /u /b

"I... hate... spiders..."

"Ali, would you get off the toilet so someone else can use the bathroom?" asked Ace.

Ali was stranded in the middle of the bathroom, standing on top of the toilet seat. She was cowering in fear of one small wolf spider seated happily in the middle of the tiled floor. Ace, Nathan, and Arik were all staring at her, waiting for her to move.

"I'm not going anywhere. KILL THAT THING!!!" she screamed.

Ace looked down at spider skeptically and then back up at Ali, who looked like she was going to wet herself. Ace sighed.

"It didn't do anything. Look at him, he's so happy and cute."

"CUTE?! I'll kill YOU if you don't kill it!!!"

"You know what Ali? We're not Lee. We don't jump at your every beck and call."

Ace, Nathan, and Arik turned and left. Ali sweat-dropped as she glanced down at the small insect, who wasn't even as big as her toe. She whimpered quietly.

"Cute. Yeah right."

- - -

"Geez, could Ali be any more of a whiner?" asked Ace, laying on the couch. "It's getting really annoying having her around."

"She just misses Lee," said Nathan, defending her cause. "So she wants to hang out with us. She IS pregnant, so we have to take care of her."

"And taking care of her means not leaving her stranded with that scary, world-threatening spider," pointed out Arik, though his comment was mostly sarcasm. "I'll go get her."

Arik turned and headed back up the stairs, while Nathan went and sat on the coffee table. He glanced at the stressed out Ace.

"Ace, seriously, what's wrong?" inquired Nathan with concern. "You've never had a problem with Ali before."

"It's just... when Lee was around she wasn't annoying. We don't even know if Lee and Earnest are safe. What if they... what if they ended up like James?"

"Don't think like that. They're fighting two psychos and they need our support, whether we're with them or not."

"Thank god the two psychos on our end are out of the way," mumbled Ace. At that exact moment, the phone rang. Nathan and Ace glanced at it.

"Now who could that be? The only person who ever calls here is Arik... and he's upstairs," stated Nathan.

Ace shrugged and reached for the phone.

"Maybe it's Lee's dad or Tori," he said to Nathan before picking up the phone. "Hello, Tony's Slaughterhouse, you bring 'em, we kill 'em."

"A slaughter is underway alright," said the familiar evil voice of Rathjen on the phone. "It would be Tori's, Ace..."

"Where is she!?" exclaimed Ace, sitting upright on the couch.

"Come and try to save her if you can! We're at our old hideout. Muahahaha!"

"You sick freak--" began Ace angrily, before the phone hung up on the other end. Nathan glanced at him in wonder. "It was fricken Dean Rathjen! He's got Tori-- again!"

"Geez, she's like a hostage for rent," joked Nathan. "You can't be too worried; Rathjen has no powers anymore."

"Still, we have to go!"

"Go where?" asked Arik as he and a very shaky Ali descended from the stairs.

"Arik, start up Earnest's truck! I'll tell you on the way!"

- - -

Arik raced along the city streets, knowing the location of the scientists' old hideout all too well. Ace worriedly gripped the dashboard in the passenger's seat while Ali and Nathan looked out from the back.

"This is a joke, right?" asked Arik. "We already kicked Rathjen's sorry ass!"

"Maybe, but it's still a trap," Ali said. "Why are we running blindly into it?"

"What do we have to fear?" questioned Nathan.

"Well, Desiree for one."

"She's not much of a physical attacker though. She prefers to get others to fight for her," Nathan told them. "She's been like that since she used her Dark Necklaces."

"Then we're facing Tammy," Ace spat out. "Think people! Who cares what we fight, we need to free Tori AND Tammy!"

"Yeah, she's been under her sick control too long... I know how that feels..." sighed Ali. "Alright Ace, I'm backing you on this."

"So am I," added Nathan.

"Well, if we're all agreed..." began Arik, flooring his foot on the pedal as they neared the scientists' lair. "... let's kick some ass!"

Arik brought the truck to a halt a few meters in front of the old warehouse. The door was still smashed down from when Gigadramon was there last. They four of them climbed out of the pick-up truck.

"Do they expect us to go in?" asked Nathan, not seeing anything of note.

"No, we expect you to die!"

Green and Rathjen stepped out of the warehouse, both wearing sick grins on their faces. The four Hikari Chosen gasped.

"You?!" exclaimed Ace, noticing Green. "Lee wasted you! And we took you out too, Rathjen! Why are you still hanging around the evil people?"

"Because you children stole my life!" snarled Green. "And as long as I'm alive, I'll have REVENGE!!!"

"You destroyed my fortress!" yelled Rathjen, pointing an accusing finger at them. He glared at them from behind his glasses. "Months of planning all gone! Thanks to you!"

"What are you gonna do about it?"

Green and Rathjen both screamed out as Shadow data swirled around them. The four Hikari Chosen gasped and stepped back.

"You just had to ask, didn't you, Nathan!?" exclaimed Ace.

"Desiree must've given them more Shadow data!"

"Very perceptive Alison," growled Green, now in the form of BlackWarGreymon. "And more than ever before! I may not be able to kill Lee, but crushing his friends will be a start!"

"Where's Tori!?" demanded Ace.

"We don't have Tori, you fool," Rathjen told them, now in the form of Cannondramon. "We just knew you'd run blindly into a trap if we mentioned her. This is nothing but physical combat. No strings attached."

"That don't sound like your game, but if that's the way you want it... I'll be happy to wipe the floor with ya!" yelled Ace, whipping out his D-Volver and summoning DemiTyrannomon. The other three did the same.

"Bouncemon, get those freaks!" shouted Arik. "Use warp evolution!"

"Bouncemon Ultimate Shinka... DESTINMON!!!"

"You too, Demi T!" added Ace.

"DemiTyrannomon Ultimate Shinka... WARDRAGONMON!!!"

"Let's send these nerds packing, Octopimon!"

"Octopimon Ultimate Shinka... SANGAMON!!!"

"Finally you: Kotemon!" finished Nathan.

"Kotemon Shinka... Musyamon!!! Musyamon Shinka... CHAOSMON!!!"

Rathjen and Green glanced at their new opponents. WarDragonmon and Destinmon stood directly in front of them while Sangamon towered over them all. The giant purple octopus was nearly as big as the warehouse. Chaosmon hovered in the sky above them all.

"See this? This is the dream team that'll take you out!" yelled Ace. "Why not give up now and go back to filing papers?"

"Not yet," growled Rathjen, locking his cannons into place. "GRENADE STORM!!!"

"Kids, take cover!" yelled Chaosmon. "CHAOS FLARE!!!"

Chaosmon blasted both grenades Rathjen fired in mid-air, rendering them useless. Ace, Arik, Ali, and Nathan rushed away from their partners to give them more fighting space.

"I'll take both of you on!" shouted Green to WarDragonmon and Destinmon.

"Your funeral," said Destinmon. "ANGEL KICK!!!"

Destinmon flew at Green, but he side-stepped his kick and gave Destinmon a punch to the ribs with his sharp claws! Destinmon fell to the side but spread his red wings and flew upwards. His attack was only to distract Green from noticing WarDragonmon.

"You think you're tough, Green? Let's see you handle me!" yelled WarDragonmon, punching Green and sending him crashing through the side of the warehouse. Green groaned as he felt the impact from smashing through the metal wall.

"Ugh... I'm not done yet!" shouted Green to his two Ultimate foes. "TERRA DESTROYER!!!"

Green hurled the red energy ball out through the side of the warehouse, hitting WarDragonmon and flinging him to the ground. Destinmon gasped as he looked over to see Green almost right on top of him.

"TERRA DEST--"

"ANGEL FIRE!!!" screamed Destinmon quickly.

He launched a fireball right into Green's chest and sent him smashing back into the warehouse! His Terra Destroyer was accidentally flung upwards through the roof of the warehouse and cause it to crash down on him!

"Nicely played," complimented WarDragonmon as Destinmon helped him up.

Meanwhile, Cannondramon/Rathjen was firing grenades wildly at Chaosmon, who kept teleporting to avoid the destructive dinosaur's shots.

"You can't hit me, I'm too fast for you!" shouted Chaosmon, still dodging grenades. Rathjen just growled and continued trying to blast the swift demon.

"Chaosmon is gonna wear him out..." observed Nathan.

"Nah, Sangamon'll put the boot to him long before that," Ali told him.

"FLOOD OF POWER!!!" bellowed Sangamon, beginning to glow blue as if she was charging energy. Rathjen turned to face her when he heard her shout that attack.

i No! If he hits Sangamon she won't be able to attack/i thought Chaosmon. "CHAOS FLARE!!!"

Chaosmon launched repeated fireballs from his palms, hitting Rathjen in the side! Rathjen snarled and turned back to face Chaosmon.

"Insolent bug! Fight me fair!" yelled Rathjen at him. Chaosmon just waved politely and pointed at Sangamon. Rathjen turned to see what he was pointing at. "... oh no."

"Oh yes!" shouted Sangamon, now fully charged. "WATER TSUNAMI!!!"

A huge wave burst up from the bay surrounding the southern end of the warehouse and concentrated itself into a huge water stream! She slammed it into Cannondramon, sending him flying through a building and smashing out onto the street the other side!

"I took note of his weakness to water the last time we fought him," Ali told them. The boys nodded in approval.

"So much for these geezers!" shouted Arik. "Have they realized that they can't beat us yet?"

"Ugh... damn... short circuit..." moaned Rathjen, laying helpless on the street.

BlackWarGreymon burst out of the warehouse and flew over all of them, landing next to the fallen robot dinosaur. He glanced at the four chosen and their partners.

"Give up?" asked Nathan.

"Not quite. You will all still pay for your injustices!" Green told them as their four partners regrouped and faced Green and Rathjen.

"I think you hit your head too hard flying through that wall! We didn't do anything to you!" shouted Ace.

- - -

Underground, Desiree was sitting in the chair of the scientists' main chamber, watching this showdown via her computer. She laughed with amusement.

"Oh if only the fools knew the new power my scientist friends possessed..." chuckled Desiree. She then glanced behind her, where Tammy was standing like a zombie, waiting to be activated once more.

"Tammy hasn't seen use since she was defeated by Lee and Ali, but that's only because I was updating her program. She's more powerful than Green and Rathjen combined. So if they fail... the Hikari Chosen will still lose! Oh... I love a good suicide mission, don't you Tammy?"

Tammy didn't respond, of course.

"That's right, you do agree with me my lovely vessel of darkness," said Desiree, wrapping her arms around the blonde girl. "You're the only one I care about, and I'll make sure you get love all the way until you kill them! The Hikari Chosen AND those pathetic men!"

"Then... then I'm afraid I'll have no more use for you..." sighed Dezzy, un-embracing Tammy and holding her hand against her forehead in woe. "But I'm certain there are plenty of ways for you to kill yourself, no? Ohhh... I do believe I'm insane and I love it!"

Dezzy leapt back in the chair to watch the battle continue.

"And my power will be infinite once Lunn and Irvine bring back DarkNitemon's data. But they had better know what they're doing trifling with power like that... because if they use Amara at the wrong time... they're all DEAD! Every one of them and all of Trinity Server!"

"But then again... things would be more fun like that! Ahahaha!" she giggled insanely, spinning around in her chair.

- - -

Green had finished telling them about his wife, and all four Chosen were shocked that he believed they cut him off from saving her.

"That's bull, Green! You just have no idea about Trinity Server!" yelled Nathan.

"I'm sorry about your wife but we are innocent!" pleaded Ali. "Why do you insist on hurting yourself like this?"

"Green, don't listen to them!" shouted the still-toppled Rathjen. "Let us invoke the Shadow one last time to wipe these whelps out!"

"Indeed!" agreed Green. "Jogress Shinka!"

"Jogress Shinka?" asked Ace in surprise. "What the hell is that?"

"That's when two or more Digimon fuse together," Chaosmon told them. "It's a very powerful kind of evolution."

"Well shit," gasped Ace.

Cannondramon and BlackWarGreymon broke up into Shadow Data and their data began to combine and swirl together! A fierce gale was created from the force of the fusion and all the Chosen had to cover their eyes.

The new Digimon formed had the body of BlackWarGreymon but underneath the helmet hung a feral jaw like a dinosaur's. Attached to his back were two cannons and one was mounted on his chest! A huge tail slammed down on the ground as BlackWarGreymon gained more metallic armor and stamina from Cannondramon!

"BALISTAMON!!!" screamed Green and Rathjen's voices in unison.

The new Digimon stood there in front of them, growling with each breath he took. He glared up at the Chosen, who all screamed in fright. He yelled with a mix of both their voices.

"Time for death!!! Argh!" he growled, taking off into the air. Both of his forearm shield popped out of place, revealing two more huge cannons! He then held his arms up into the air as if he was charging a Terra Destroyer!

"REVOLVER FORCE!!!"

He launched not one... but THREE Terra Destroyer balls at once! Sangamon, Chaosmon, and Destinmon were all hit and sent flying back across the pavement!

"Holy hell!" exclaimed Ace, mortified.

"That's insane!" yelled Arik.

"You missed one!" growled WarDragonmon, flying up at Balistamon who was still snarling uncontrollably. "ICE DRAGON CLAW!!!"

WarDragonmon swung his claw at the fusion Digimon, but Balistamon simply grabbed his arm in mid-attack! He punched WarDragonmon in the head, sending him smashing back down to earth!

"That was for defeating me last time-- kill the children-- not yet, the Digimon first-- no, shut up!!!"

"Huh?" gasped Ali as Balistamon argued with himself. "Looks like they're having problems working in unison."

"That might be our key to victory," added Ace.

"Fine, the Digimon first! But hurry, I want the-- blah blah, I know!"

"If you can catch me," said Chaosmon, beginning his teleporting trick again. Balistamon followed him around with his eyes as Chaosmon teleported.

"Nice try, but this time it won't work!" yelled Balistamon. "GRENADE STORM!!!"

Balistamon launched a swarm of grenades and one hit Chaosmon right as he appeared! Chaosmon was flung backwards by the bunt of the attack.

"Any more of you fools want to-- oof!" grunted Balistamon as Sangamon smashed him in the back with one of her thick tentacles. Balistamon growled as he turned to face the large octopus.

"You stupid little-- we'll get you-- now we will!" he shouted in broken sentences. "REVOLVER FORCE!!!"

Firing off three Terra Destroyer's again, Sangamon was blasted and considerably defeated. She collapsed to the ground and reverted to her Child form of Octopimon.

"Oh no..." gasped Ali.

"Yo homeboys!" yelled a voice from above. Balistamon glanced up to see WarDragonmon above him with a fully charged Terra Inferno in his mouth! "Let's see you stop this one, Rathjen!"

"What's he doing-- oh no, not again! -- What is it? -- He's gonna--"

"TERRA INFERNO!!!" he screamed, launching the huge ball of fire at Balistamon! Balistamon held out his claws to block it but was then pushed downwards by the attack as it threatened to consume him!

"Don't give up -- i'm not!"

But little did they know Destinmon had positioned himself below them as they fell slowly try to stop the Terra Inferno. He grinned as he leapt up at them.

"ANGEL KICK!!!" he shouted, leaping upwards and kicking Balistamon in the back! The fused Digimon lost his hold on WarDragonmon's attack and was knocked into the heart of the huge fireball! With a huge scream, the fireball exploded, taking Balistamon with it!

"Score!" cheered Arik. "I think that did it!"

"NOOOOOOOOO!!!" screamed Balistamon in agony as he fell smoking to the ground. He tried to get up, but collapsed under his own weight. The Shadow data dissapated off of him, leaving Green and Rathjen laying on the ground. Both of them were speechless.

Ace, Ali, Arik, and Nathan walked over and stood in front of them.

"Look at you snivel down there," said Nathan. "Don't you see now? The Shadow can never match the power of the light."

"You're one to talk..." groaned Rathjen, still laying in defeat. "You were once a Shadow emissary."

"But then I saw the light... you should as well."

"Yes, we have no desire to kill you," Ali told them, leaning forward and putting her hands on her knees. "Please give up your senseless desire for power."

"Ugh..." groaned Rathjen. "Maybe you're right... maybe I should just go back to being human. I may hate my career... but I'm good at it."

"Yeah, you're one hard ass Dean! But we all respected you," Arik said. "Maybe we'll learn to again."

"Maybe..."

"I have no life to go back to..." sighed Green. "I lost the election to Richard... my wife died... and now the one last resort I had let me down."

"That's why you never ever trust the Shadow. It's done horrors to many worlds before," Ali told him.

"I guess this is finally over," said Ace, happily.

"Oh Ace... how WRONG you are!"

The lot of them turned to look in the direction of a new voice entering the conversation. Standing in a full Shadow bodysuit covering everything except her face and blonde hair... was Tammy.

"Well look who's skanky and still whimpering from the last time I whipped you," growled Ali.

"You won't talk so confidently when that tongue slams out the other side of your head with my fist," snarled Tammy. Her voice had that strange eerie echo to it, signaling her possession by the Shadow.

Ali backed away and hid behind Ace, intimidated by the threat. Ace, Nathan, and Arik all glared her down.

"Once we slap that Shadow off of ya, you'll be good as new..." began Ace, but he was interrupted by Rathjen.

"Listen!" shouted Rathjen. "Tammy has been possessed by the Shadow for too long! She's become part of the core! You cannot cure her!"

"What?!" exclaimed all four Hikari Chosen.

"You have to destroy her! Or she'll continue to serve Desiree in her quest for darkness!" Rathjen told them.

"No!" protested Nathan. "We can't kill her! Amara and Lee would be devastated!"

Green and Rathjen got up, keeping an eye on Tammy. Tammy simply stood there and watched the small group.

"Do you honestly believe Amara and Lee are still alive?" asked Rathjen. "You have no idea what Irvine and Lunn were sent to do..."

"Tell us," demanded Ace, grabbing Rathjen by the collar of his shirt. "Right now!"

Green decided to fill in for Rathjen in this explanation.

"The reason Amara Aquilla was chosen to lead the Yami Chosen was to prepare her for her future destiny," Green told them. "Jeska, Ray, and Tori were useless stepping stones we added to further her progress... and we got rid of them when their job was done."

"They came back," said Arik.

"That wasn't our concern," continued Green. "You might have noticed we didn't get rid of Amara."

"And she traveled along with Lunn and Irvine... why?" asked Ali. "What is going to happen to my boyfriend?!"

"Lee and his foolish friends will not survive the encounter," Rathjen told them. "For once Amara is offered as sacrifice to--"

"Enough out of you!" yelled Tammy. "ArcaDemon, kill the traitors!!!"

Tammy pulled out her Yami D-Volver. Ace's eyes widened and he dropped Rathjen. They all faced her as she summoned... yet a new ArcaDemon form.

"What the hell...?" gasped Arik. "It's evolved AGAIN!"

This time ArcaDemon was a very bulky demon Digimon. He was grey and black colored and his chest and forearms were huge in contrast to his arms and torso. He had a long slender head that didn't appear to have eyes, but it did have a drooling mouth. Also he had four large wings that looked like they also acted as armor for his back.

"Yes!" shouted Tammy, crazily. "This is ArcaDemon Ultimate!!! The last Digimon you'll ever fight!"

"Does that thing beat out the spider in scariness?" asked Nathan of Ali. Ali just sweat-dropped.

ArcaDemon Ultimate wasted no time in getting to business. In a familiar attack pattern, he held his arms into the air as dozens of small orb bombs appeared in the air!

"Not this again!" groaned Nathan.

"DOT MATRIX!!!" bellowed ArcaDemon. He flung the bombs over the heads of the Chosen at their partners!

WarDragonmon was hit first and didn't last ten seconds. He slammed hard on his back on the ground. Destinmon was smashed and sent crashing into the bay. Chaosmon attempted to teleport, but there were too many and he was rendered unconscious.

"No way!" exclaimed Arik.

"EXILE SPEAR!!!"

Ace, Arik, Nathan, and Ali all gasped, figuring they were the next targets. But they weren't.

ArcaDemon hurled two spears with precision accuracy at Rathjen and Green! Both men were skewered on the spears and flew backwards with them until they jabbed into the cement. Their bodies slid down the spears to the ground, impaling them further.

"Ohmigod!" screamed Ali. "Gross!"

"That is sick! What's wrong with you?!" yelled Nathan.

"Everything," answered Tammy without emotion. "But I'm not through yet! The games are over and you lose! There are no continues!"

Ace glanced at Rathjen and Green, who were laying still... they were dead. He then glanced at the four useless partners. After battles with Balistamon, they were too worn out to fight.

"Book it!" yelled Ace. He turned and dashed in the other direction. Ali, Nathan, and Arik turned to follow his lead.

"Escape is impossible! Show them ArcaDemon!"

"DOT MATRIX!!!"

The orb bombs flew over their heads and crashed into the buildings ahead of them. Pieces of the buildings crumbled and collapsed off, blocking the only road leading there off. The only other escape route would be to jump into the bay, but there was no way they could swim fast enough!

"We're so screwed…" gasped Nathan.

"Exactly. Now prepare to enjoy painful deaths, one by one! Ahahaha!!!" laughed Shadow Tammy. "ArcaDemon... do it execution style.


	30. Face Off

Lee stumbled back into the secret elevator leading down to the underground bunker in Beta Server. Still holding the large cut on his right cheek, he collapsed to the floor, beaten more emotionally then physically.

"Ugh..." groaned Lee. "I'll make him pay... I'll make him bleed..."

"Oh my god! Lee!" he heard a voice shriek.

Lee noticed he was at the bottom of the elevator shaft and looked up to see a worried Amara run over to him. Emeraldmon, Kokuwamon, Beelzemon and Jijimon were behind her. She knelt down and moved his hand away from his cheek so she could see the wound.

"That looks horrible! What happened?!"

"I'll go find you something," said Beelzemon, turning and walking off. The others looked at Lee, waiting to be filled in.

"Lunn..." muttered Lee. "Lunn did this."

"Who is Lunn?" inquired Jijimon.

"He'd be the psycho who slaughtered this Server," Kokuwamon told him. "Lee are you alright?"

"I'll live," replied Lee, pushing Amara off of him and standing up. Amara tried to dive into his mind, but couldn't even read his thoughts.

i Whoa, he's so pissed off I can't even make sense of his thoughts... has Lee ever been this angry? Well once... when I faked Ali's death... /i 

"Here, apply this to him," said Beelzemon, walking back in and handing a small first aid kit to Amara. "It'll probly burn."

"I don't care," growled Lee.

Amara took a washcloth and wiped the blood off of his face first. Then she took a swab and began tending to his cut. Amara and the Digimon all looked at him with morbid fascination.

"What?" asked Lee, annoyed by their staring.

"That should burn like hell," Beelzemon told him. "It made ME cry like a girl."

"I don't care about it. I don't really care about anything right now... except stopping those bastards," hissed Lee. "Jijimon, show us the portal to Alpha Server. They're already there."

"My... that is bad..." gasped Jijimon. "Follow me."

Lee took the washcloth from Amara and used it to wipe the blood off his hands. He then tossed the washcloth on the floor and followed Jijimon. The small old man Digimon led them down a hallway and after a locked door... there it was. It looked like a small generator with rippling air above it.

"Is that it?" asked Kokuwamon. "Looks kinda puny."

"You are kinda puny," replied Beelzemon. Kokuwamon giggled.

"Oh yeah. Well let's go!"

Kokuwamon leapt into the portal. Emeraldmon and Lee followed him.

"Thanks for helping us," Amara said to Jijimon and Beelzemon. "I bet Lee would've said thanks if he wasn't so mad... don't blame him."

"Just make sure that they're stopped. No more lives must be taken by those lunatics," Jijimon told her.

"I'd go with ya myself, but I'm kinda a peacekeeper here," said Beelzemon.

Both Ultimate Digimon saluted her and turned to head back to the secret bunker. Amara grinned as she prepared herself.

"No problem, leave it to us!" shouted Amara. She then turned and walked into the portal. "Alpha Server, here we come!"

"Do ya think they can win?" asked Beelzemon.

"Lee is resourceful... but they'll still need luck. If Amara is who I think she is... then that's a whole different story..."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Twenty-Nine: Face-Off /u /b 

Lee, Amara, Kokuwamon, and Emeraldmon appeared in the center of Alpha Server. The circuit board triangle floating in cyberspace was quite a sight to behold for Amara and Lee.

"Whoa... does this place look familiar to you?" asked Amara.

"No."

"Huh... it must just be me then..."

"We used to live in this Server before we got warped up to your world," Kokuwamon told Lee. "Bet ya didn't know that!"

"You guys used to live here?" wondered Amara.

"I did. Emeraldmon was busy being a thief with the other Yami Chosen Digimon."

"Heh," was all they got out of Emeraldmon.

Amara nodded and glanced around a bit more. She noticed the three spires and tried to figure out which one was the one Irvine and Lunn were in.

"Shall we split up and search?" she suggested, enthusiastically. She was trying to get Lee's spirits up, but it wasn't working.

"I don't care."

"Look, are you mad at me about earlier?" she asked. "Look that was just me when I'm horny. You're with the real Amara now!"

"I don't know who the real you is," Lee told her. "You keep switching personas. But most importantly... because of that statue."

Lee pointed at the statue of naked Amara in the center of Alpha Sector. Amara's jaw dropped when she saw it. She ran over to it, with the other three following.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" she exclaimed. "Alright, who's the pervert?!"

"I don't know," answered Lee in his simplistic logic he had just adapted. "But I want one for my house."

"Hah hah very funny! You wouldn't like it if there was a naked statue here with your penis sticking out!"

"No, but you would."

"That's not the point," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. "And besides, you could have had the real thing last night."

"Err..." mumbled Lee, unsure of what to say. "My cheek still hurts."

"Hey, that's the statue of our savior, not Amara!" shouted Kokuwamon to them. "Although the resemblance is uncanny. Amara, take off your clothes and lets make an actual comparison."

Amara fell over.

"Lee, your Digimon is like you."

"I know, it's... sad," groaned Lee. "Anyway, like Kokuwamon said... it's a statue of their Savior. So it's just a coincidence."

"Maybe..."

"Hey, there you guys are!" shouted a voice from behind. "We were wondering if you'd made it!"

The foursome turned to see Jeska, Earnest, Hieshi, and their partners running at them from the direction of Hikari Spire. Lee waved.

"We were wondering the same thing," said Lee to them. "What's up with naked Amara."

"Yes... please..." moaned Amara, knowing that they could all see her completely naked now. "I don't care if is just a resemblance, they sure got my chest right."

"I'm taking mental notes as you go," said Hieshi. Jeska groaned and covered both his and Earnest's eyes.

"Cover Lee's perverted eyes," she told Amara.

"Eh, I don't care what he sees. Just keep THEIR dirty eyes off me!"

"Cruel and unusual punishment!" yelled Hieshi. "You should be glad I'm even HELPING you people!"

"Oh shut up," Earnest told him, blinded as well. "Leila, tell me if Amara's aura is the same as our saviors'."

"Alright, Earnest," said Leila in WarRenamon form. She walked past Rievermon and Morphlingmon in the direction of Amara. Amara jumped away from her, pressing her back up against the base of the statue.

"Whoa there fox lady! First tell me what the hell is going on!" she shouted, somewhat nervous. "I still don't trust you people!"

"Amara, just let Leila check," Lee said. "I know Earnest and Leila, they're good people."

"... if you say so. Fine, go ahead."

"Can I give her a breast exam after?" asked Hieshi. Jeska sighed pulled on his ear. "Ow! OW!"

"Since when are you so perverted?" she whined. "You're just impossible lately."

"Well I hang out with you guys now. So since I can't be cool, I'll be perverted."

"I'm going to take that personally," said Jeska, slamming him onto the ground. He looked up woozily at the red-head. "Now lay there until I tell you to get up, bitch."

"Yes ma'am," he groaned. i God, is she making me go soft?! Nah... /i 

Leila walked over to Amara, who relaxed a bit. She put her hands on either side of Amara's head. Amara glanced up in wonder at the armored fox Digimon.

"Hold still..." Leila told her.

Everyone looked on as Leila closed her eyes and began to read Amara's energy. It was a advantage to being a spiritually connected Digimon. She opened her eyes a moment later and released Amara's head. Amara rubbed the parts of her head that Leila was gripping.

"Well?" asked Earnest in anticipation.

"It's... exactly the same," said Leila. "Amara... you are... whoever that statue is of."

"What?!" exclaimed Earnest, Jeska, Lee, and Amara all at once. Amara glanced down at the headstone, saying it was dedicated to their savior. She turned pale.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

"Your biorhythmic signature says yes, so I'm pretty sure."

Amara was about to respond when suddenly Seraphimon and DeathXmon came floating over to them from the direction of Hikari Spire. Everyone directed their attention to the two holy beings except for Amara, who was caught up in her own thoughts.

"Who the heck are shiny and... anti-shiny?" wondered Lee.

"That'd be the Yami and Hikari Gods: Seraphimon and DeathXmon," Jeska told him. "DeathXmon looks tough, but Morphlingmon and I kicked his ass."

"I don't even feel like questioning you..."

"Jeska and friends, we've detected strange activities in Infinity Spire!" Seraphimon shouted excitedly. "We must strike now! Do you want us to send an assault force or--"

"No," Lee interrupted. "This is our problem and we'll deal with it!"

"... are you NUTS?!" exclaimed Jeska. "We need all the help we can get, beach boy!"

"See this scar on my cheek?" asked Lee, pointing to his right cheek. "Lunn gave me it. I want to repay him myself."

"That's one big-ass scar," said Hieshi, getting up. "But Lee's right. We can take Irvine and Lunn by ourselves."

"If you're sure then alright," Seraphimon agreed. "Jeska proved herself to me, and I'm sure the rest of you are just as reliable. Especially with former guardian Leila and... and... my stars... is that...?"

"It's our savior!" exclaimed DeathXmon, signaling Amara. "All hail the holy one!"

DeathXmon and Seraphimon both bowed to Amara. Everyone else looked at her. She was considerably embarrassed.

"Uh... at ease..." she whined nervously. "I don't want any special attention... I'm a Chosen just like everyone else."

"Yeah, with telepathy."

"And telekinesis too, Hieshi," added Lee.

"So? It just... er..." she trailed off into mumbling. "LETS GO FIGHT THOSE SCIENTIST BASTARDS!!!"

Amara promptly turned and marched off in the direction of Infinity Spire, all by herself. She stopped a few meters away and looked back to see everyone staring at her.

"Are you COMING?!"

"I'm too afraid of you to say no..." whined Lee, following her with the rest of the Chosen and partners.

"Good luck... you'll need it," DeathXmon told them.

- - -

"Is everything set up?"

Irvine glanced at Lunn, who walked into a large room located inside Infinity Spire. This room was vastly huge and made completely of a shiny substance that resembled crystal. At the far end were two statues and a black door that looked sealed shut.

"Look for yourself..."

Irvine extended his arms to the roof and Lunn gazed up at the fixtures Irvine had applied, probably with use of his MetalSeadramon form. There were four panels on the roof that looked like solar panels. They were glowing red and the glow was extending itself to the rest of the massive room.

"So you think this will work?" asked Lunn. "And not kill us all?"

"Just do your executioner job and all will go fine."

"The whelps are coming. I will do so."

Lunn turned and exited from the door he came in from and Irvine watched him leave. He then inspected the four panels he placed on the roof.

i That's all you're good for, you fool, /i thought Irvine. i I'll tend to some of the intruders myself... seeing as how Lunn will only want to fight Lee. Sleep tight my creation... /i 

Irvine turned and walked out another door, grinning madly as he knew the Chosen had no idea what was in store for them.

- - -

"Wow... this place is beautiful! DarkNitemon really knew how to live in style!" exclaimed Jeska as the group of Chosen and Digimon ran into Infinity Spire.

The halls and floors were highly decorated like a royal palace and made of the same crystal substance as the room Irvine was in earlier. The other four Chosen were not as easily impressed as Jeska.

"Wow, I'm amazed. You have a feminine side," muttered Hieshi flatly as Jeska started picking at stuff that was set up.

"I can show you my masculine side with my foot in your ass," responded Jeska.

"DarkNitemon...?" wondered Amara, confused.

"Yeah, the Digi-bitch you wasted eighteen years ago!" shouted Jeska. "Leila says it's you... and so do Seraphimon and DeathXmon! Amara, that WAS you!"

"No it wasn't! The statue was a MEMORIAL!"

"So? Angels die, they get reborn," replied Jeska, leaning against the wall. "Even you should know that, dork."

"I'm no angel..." sighed Amara.

"Anyway..." began Earnest, who had gone on ahead with Lee and Hieshi. "There are two routes to take... which one do you suggest, ladies?"

"I say right," answered Jeska.

"I say left," answered Amara at the same time.

"Alright, we'll split up," Earnest said. "Leila, you know how to deactivate this spire's core, right?"

"Yes," answered Leila. "But I'll need cover."

"I can provide that," suggested Morphlingmon. "But I can't cover too many, so I think it's best if only I assist you."

"Agreed," replied Leila.

"I guess I'm with Earnest," said Jeska. "Yay, I get to be bored!"

Earnest waved off her sarcastic comment and traveled down the right hallway with Leila, Jeska, and Morphlingmon. Lee glanced at his team: Amara and Hieshi.

"And we're the cool team," said Lee. "Let's go."

Lee led Amara, Hieshi, Kokuwamon, Rievermon, and Emeraldmon down the left hallway.

"I feel strangely at home here..." mumbled Emeraldmon as she glanced around.

"Cuz you're named after crystal," answered Amara. "I'm glad Jeska's gone though. I was sick of her continually embarrassing me."

"What's to be embarrassed about?" wondered Hieshi, chirping in from behind her. "I think it's amazing that you saved the whole--"

"Why don't you people understand that I didn't do anything?! I never--" began Amara, but she froze. She suddenly thought back to something her father told her.

b i "Stop! I need to know something first. ... am I adopted...?"

"What?! No!"

Amara sighed and decided it would be easier just to read his mind. Instantly she got the answer she wanted.

"I am," she sighed, looking at her feet. "Then... who are my real parents...?"

"Amara... it's... it was a strange thing... your mother and I couldn't believe our eyes..."

"About what?" asked Amara, deciding it would be better just to hear him say what he was going to say instead of reading his mind.

"We had been trying to conceive a child for almost a year, but it wasn't working. We were considering adopting, but... suddenly... a baby appeared."

"I appeared?"

"From the computer. We had no idea how it happened. You just... appeared." /i /b 

"I... maybe... argh, shut up Hieshi!" screamed Amara, storming off to walk next to Lee. "Oh what, you think I am too?!"

"I never said--"

"You thought it!"

"Quit reading my mind!" shouted Lee back.

"Guys! Shut up!" hissed Hieshi in a low whisper. "Rievermon hears something."

They glanced at Rievermon and the demon Digimon was standing perfectly still as if he was listening to something. He began to tense up within a split-second.

"Everyone duck!" he yelled.

Amara, Hieshi, Emeraldmon, and Lee did as told and dove for the ground. A shrunken zoomed past, one that would have flown through at least three of them. They all gasped as it embedded itself a far way into the wall.

"Who the hell is that!?" exclaimed Hieshi.

"Lunn," snarled Lee, rubbing his right cheek. He got up and ran into the next room, where the shrunken was flung from. The others followed him to see Lunn standing at the other side of the immense room, in front of a wide open door.

"One thing I can say for DarkNitemon, she conveniently keeps her rooms large," said Lunn. "All the better for our confrontation, Lee. I trust I properly motivated you earlier."

"Oh you did..." growled Lee, getting defensive.

b i "You are a lucky man, Lee Trainer," Lunn told him. "I expect to have a worthy fight from you in the future. Until then, here's your motivator to fight me with everything you have!"

Lunn turned and whipped another shrunken. He hit Tsunomon and the poor baby Digimon deleted! Lee screamed in fury and reached for his D-Volver again, but Lunn threw another one, blazing Lee across the cheek! The blonde boy fell backwards from the pain as he heard Lunn's laughter fade. /i /b 

"We can take this joker easily," said Hieshi.

"Unfortunately, I extended an invitation to Lee only," began Lunn. "So the rest of you must be eliminated now."

"What?" gasped Amara.

"Hiya!" screamed Lunn, hurling a shrunken at light-speed towards Hieshi. Hieshi just as swiftly drew a katana from his pant leg and slashed the shrunken with it. It clattered to the floor in two pieces.

"You won't catch me so easily," Hieshi told him.

"Perhaps not, but the female is undefended!" shouted Lunn, hurling another shrunken in Amara's direction!

"Ah!" she barely choked out in surprise. She held her hands up in defense and managed to stop the shrunken in mid-air with her telekinesis. She gasped as she held the shrunken in place in the air. "Ohmigod... that was so close. These powers really ARE a blessing."

"Lunn this is between you and me," Lee told him, concerned for Amara's safety. "Let them go."

"Are you kidding?" asked Hieshi. "I want a piece of this--"

"Hieshi, you understand rivalry. Lunn is my rival. Let me fight him with only Kokuwamon as my ally. Please."

"... fine," grumbled Hieshi, mad that he wasn't going to get to do any ass-kicking. "Let us through, please."

i Hmmm... if I allow Willington and Amara to pass me, then they will likely go where Irvine wants them to. But if they don't go at the specified time then... well, that's not my department. Irvine does the thinking. /i 

"You may pass," said Lunn, moving aside from the doorway.

"Lee, please be careful," pleaded Amara. Lee just nodded in response.

"Hieshi, take care of her."

Hieshi nodded and led Amara, Rievermon, and Emeraldmon through the doorway to continue on towards hopefully stopping Irvine's plan. Lunn grinned once they were out of the way.

"Ah Lee, I've been waiting for this a long time... ever since you first became SaintMachinedramon and defeated Green. The potential I sensed in you as my student had fully released itself and granted you the most immense power out of any of you Hikari Chosen. Out of any Digimon."

"Except for you, right?"

"No. I made sure my power is equal to yours. Exactly."

"What?" gasped Lee. This came as a shock to him. "Why?"

"Battles should not be decided by power, but by skill! Now let me see if the student has become the teacher, Lee! Don't hold back! Remember Tsunomon and all those innocent Digimon I killed!"

"Oh I remember..." growled Lee. "Kokuwamon, you ready?"

"Aren't I always?"

"Good, fuse together," said Lunn. "Let me see it."

"KOKUWAMON SHINKA!!!" screamed the metallic insect. Lee's clothes ripped off and he fused into Kokuwamon, forming the mechanical angel Digimon once more.

"SAINTMACHINEDRAMON!!!"

"Marvelous..." gasped Lunn as SaintMachinedramon stood in front of him. SaintMachinedramon began talking in a hybrid of both of their voices.

"Lunn, you've bit off more than you can chew!"

"Well you're a Digimon now, I suppose it's time for me to become... SaintMachinedramon!"

"What?!" exclaimed Lee.

Lunn swirled with black Shadow Data, almost knocking SaintMachinedramon over as he did. They glanced up as Lunn's Digimon form revealing an exact copy of himself, only it was black.

"What did I tell you Lee? We really are equal in power! Ahahaha!"

"Geez, Lee, can we take this guy?" wondered Kokuwamon.

"We can and we will!"

- - -

"Earneeeestttt..." moaned Jeska, walking zombie-like behind him down the long corridors. "Does your little fox thing even know where she's going?"

"To be honest, no," replied Earnest, annoyed by Jeska's tone. "Why? Do you have a better idea?"

"Yeah, try opening doors," she said, turning to the first door on her left and whipping it open. "Whoa!"

Earnest, Morphlingmon, and Leila rushed over to see Jeska had found the main power console for Infinity Spire, just what they were looking for! Once the power was shut down, Irvine would be unable to take any power from DarkNitemon's contained body!

"How do you do that?" wondered Earnest.

"Well, a little shampoo and conditioner will work wonders for--"

"No, be so impulsive."

"I dunno, it just comes naturally. Like being a dork comes naturally to you."

"Dying comes naturally to both of you!" shouted a voice, gaining all their attention. Irvine in MetalSeadramon form came crashing down through the roof, sending shards of crystal everywhere. WarRenamon and Morphlingmon ran to protect Jeska and Earnest as he stood menacingly in front of them.

"I will not let you insignificant specks interfere with my plan!!!"

"I think we picked the wrong door..." stammered Jeska.

- - -

Meanwhile, Rievermon was pounding repeatedly on yet another crystal door, attempting to open it. His slashes were having no effect though.

"Geez, whatever is behind this door must be important," guessed Amara. "Or it wouldn't be so unbreakable."

"You don't say..." mused Hieshi. Rievermon finally stopped slashing to catch his breath, and Emeraldmon walked up next to him.

"If you're done mindlessly slashing at stuff..." began Emeraldmon. "SUFFOCATION VINES!"

Emeraldmon raised her arm into the air and green vines burst out of the floor, wrapping themselves firmly around the entire door. They pulled the door inward, snapping it off the walls and smashing down onto the crystalline floor. It was the same room Irvine had set up his devices in.

"Whoa..." gasped Amara. "Look at THIS place! It's huge!"

"So is everything else," added Hieshi. "This room is kinda weird though... it has a strange red glow..."

"What is that?" asked Amara again, allowing her curiosity to get the best of her. She noticed the exalted door Irvine was standing in front of earlier. "I think--"

Hieshi stared at the door, waiting for Amara to finish her sentence. When she didn't, he turned to glance at her. She was suddenly gripping her forehead in pain.

"Amara? What's wrong?" asked Hieshi.

"Do you suddenly feel like... like... aaaigh!!!" she screamed in agony. Emeraldmon and Hieshi rushed to help her, but she smacked them away with her telekinesis! Both of them crashed down near Rievermon on the floor!

"What is happening to you?!" exclaimed Emeraldmon.

"Rievermon, get her!" ordered Hieshi quickly. "Now!"

Rievermon leapt forward, but when he got near Amara, he instantly collapsed to the floor. He was unconscious.

"What happened?!" yelled Hieshi.

"Amara's telepathic powers must have shut him down!" guessed Emeraldmon. "What is happening to her?!"

"It hurts so much..." she groaned, dropping her to her knees. She was still gripping her head, but tears were streaming down her face as well. "MAKE IT STOP!!!"

Hieshi and Emeraldmon were flung back again and crashed into the wall! They both stared ass Amara began to throw things randomly around the room. Pictures, carpets, even Rievermon!

"Her powers are out of control!" shouted Hieshi. "Hey, what are those?!"

Hieshi pointed at the roof, to the four red lights Irvine had installed earlier. Emeraldmon gasped.

"No! Those are aura syphoners!" yelled Emeraldmon in horror. "They're sucking all of Amara's energy out of her! And until they're done... she's going to be a major threat to us!"

"And when they're done!?" exclaimed Hieshi.

"She'll... die!"

- - -

Lee ran at Lunn, but Lunn swiftly turned and kicked him in the stomach! Lee staggered backwards and Lunn kicked him again in the jaw!

"It appears I wield the form of SaintMachinedramon much better than you do!"

"Shut up Lunn! HOLY CANNON!!!"

Lee snapped the cannon on his left arm into place, but Lunn did the same with his own cannon. The two blasts shot each other and cancelled the other one out. Lunn then leapt into the air, spreading his angel wings and still aiming the cannon at Lee.

"What?!" exclaimed Lee, startled by his move.

"Tag," said Lunn, blasting Lee with the cannon! Lee staggered backwards and leaned against the wall for support. Lunn landed a few meters away from him.

"Now you've made me mad, Lunn! Take this! SHINING--"

As soon as Lee extended his arms into the air to gather energy for his Shining Sword technique, Lunn knew it was time to strike. He hurled two more shrunkens, this time aimed right at Lee's wrists!

"Aagh!" hissed Lee in pain as the two ninja stars sliced right through his wrists, embedding themselves in the crystal wall! He was pinned in mid-air by his wrists! He could feel blood dripping down his arms and watched it drip onto the floor. "Let me go!!!"

"No."

Lee began to thrash his legs wildly, so Lunn skillfully pinned those against the wall with shrunkens too. Lee and Kokuwamon screamed in unison with excruciating pain! They were too weak to even spread their wings and attempt to push themselves off the wall! All the could do was lay there and bleed.

"Crucification anyone?" asked Lunn.

"You're... aggh... sick..."

"SHINING SWORD!!!" yelled Lunn, extending a blade of darkness from his hand. He brandished it in front of him and grinned evilly. He looked at Lee. "Wrists and ankles... that must hurt alot. How about we balance it out and stick something right in the middle? Like your chest?"

Lee's eyes widened. He meant the sword.

"No... agh!" he groaned. He didn't dare try to rip his arms and legs out of the wall because that could result in the loss of his hands and feet! But if he didn't, he was going to be impaled! And as the seconds went by, he lost more and more blood!

"Lee! We need a plan!" pleaded Kokuwamon. "It hurts too much!"

"I can't think! These stars must be drugged!"

"Say goodnight Lee..." began Lunn, walking towards him. "You were a good student and a good opponent. But then I went and spoiled it all by doing something stupid like IMPALE YOU!"

Lunn leapt forward and stabbed SaintMachinedramon right through the stomach with the sword. Everything went black...

TO BE CONTINUED


	31. The Grand Plan

-1"In one's final moments all he does is cry in pain. How pathetic. Take it like a man, Lee!"

Lee gasped and screamed again. With his wrists and ankles skewered against the wall by Lunn's shrunkens, and now Lunn's sword gouged right into his stomach... it all was all he --SaintMachinedramon-- could do.

"Come on Lee, stop crying! You're not dead yet!" laughed Lunn. Lunn was in an alternate form of SaintMachinedramon: a dark form. He laughed and began jerking the sword around violently, cutting Lee's stomach even more.

Lee felt like hell. The pain was too much. He and Kokuwamon both knew they couldn't last much longer! Lee gave up... and just stopped screaming. He decided just to lay there, pinned against the wall in five different places... and die.

i Lee, is it over? /i asked Kokuwamon from inside of their combined body. Lee glanced at Kokuwamon in pain.

i I'm afraid so... this is too much. I want to die now! /i 

i But... what about Amara and Ali? And all the others? They need you... /i Kokuwamon told him. i Do you want to let them down? /i 

i Argh... I can't... let... /i began Lee, thinking. But he gradually turned into speaking. "... them... DOWN!!!"

"Huh?" gasped Lunn.

Lee burst with energy, flinging Lunn backwards and knocking the four shrunkens out of his wrists and hands. Lunn looked up from where he was knocked down... SaintMachinedramon was up again.

... and down again. SaintMachinedramon collapsed onto the ground and split back into Lee and Kokuwamon. Both of them unconscious from the pain they suffered earlier. Lunn picked himself up and laughed.

"Nice try Lee... but in the end the result is the same..."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Thirty: The Grand Plan /u /b 

Jeska and Earnest were faced with the imposing form of MetalSeadramon, better known as Matt Irvine. Irvine had finally completed the task Desiree sent him to do and was not about to let these whelps stand in his way!

"All my years I'd wanted to discover something new! Bring new reports to science! Now I am so close to my goal! Once I take the Shadow Data core to Desiree she'll give me what I've always wanted! Complete control over Trinity Server so that I may research it!"

"I think you're retarded," growled Jeska. "If Desiree kept her promises, she wouldn't have broken them to us or Green!"

"Your disrespect for this world is sickening," added Earnest. "You won't research it... you'll destroy it!"

"What do you know? You're just children. And children are easily stepped on! RIVER OF POWER!!"

"I don't think so, buddy!" yelled Morphlingmon.

Jeska's humanoid partner quickly shifted his molecules so that he was identical to Irvine as MetalSeadramon! His immense serpent body took the hit, protecting them from Irvine's nose cannon.

"You may look like me, but you're not as strong as me!"

Irvine wrapped his tail around Morphlingmon's neck and flung him aside! Morphlingmon crashed into the wall and fell onto the floor, reverting to his original form.

"Ahem!" shouted Leila. Irvine glanced down to see WarRenamon charging up an attack. "PSYCHIC BOMB!!!"

A huge ball of flame materialized underneath Irvine, ready to blast him! Irvine jumped back though and used his tail to bat it directly at Leila!

"Wh-what!?" she exclaimed, taken off guard. She was slammed with the attack and knocked to the ground! Irvine then turned to Earnest and Jeska, both of whom were unprotected!

"Well Jimmy, it looks like this is it..." gasped Jeska.

"RIVER OF POWER!!!"

Irvine launched the attack directly at the two humans, but suddenly it was reflected by an invisible barrier! Jeska and Earnest both sighed with relief, that sense of impending doom was still there though.

i Who did THAT?! It can't be the Guardian... she's still lain out on the floor... hmmm... /i thought Irvine. He glanced back to Morphlingmon, who was stretching out his hand in Earnest and Jeska's direction.

"A barrier technique?" asked Irvine of Morphlingmon. "How cute, but who's protecting you?"

"Uh-oh."

"RIVER OF POWER!!!"

Irvine blasted Morphlingmon and he took the hit full frontal! He was flung backwards through the crystal wall! He groaned very weakly and reverted to his Child form of Magemon.

"No! Magemon!" screamed Jeska. "There's no way he'll be getting up after flying through a wall of crystal!"

Jeska grabbed Earnest by the collar of his deer-skin jacket and began shaking him.

"Do something, Sparky!!!"

"First, stop calling me weird names..." muttered Earnest, pushing her off of him. He turned to Leila, who was struggling to get up. He reached for his D-Volver. "Leila, do you have enough energy to Mode Change?"

"Mode Change? What the hell is that?" asked Jeska.

"Yes..." she groaned in response. "Initiate it!"

"You got it!" yelled Earnest.

Light began reflecting off his D-Volver onto Leila as she changed forms. Irvine and Jeska both had to look away due to the shining light she was giving off. Her armor burst off and she became a humanoid girl form with red hair and green eyes. A yellow strapless dress that also served as body armor appeared on her body with a flower cut off at the end. She had a tiara on and gloves and boots as well. Her weapon of choice was a lance.

"WarRenamon VALKYRIE MODE!!!" shouted Leila, brandishing the lance in front of her.

"Wow... she's so pretty..." gasped Jeska. "Bravo! But is she tough?"

"Why don't you watch for yourself?" asked Earnest.

Irvine simply scoffed at this new mode for Leila, dismissing it as yet another Ultimate which he would knock over easily.

"You look like a defenseless girl... what can you possibly--"

"GAIA THUNDER EARTHQUAKE!!!" she screamed. The ground began shaking, throwing Irvine off-balance. Suddenly he was struck by lightning that emerged from the ground!

"Aaigh!" he screamed.

But Leila wasn't finished yet. As Irvine was being electrocuted, she stretched her right arm back, readying her lance. She waited until she had a clear shot of his head.

"ELIOS TORNADO LANCE!!!" she yelled, hurling it at him. It smashed him across the head and the mighty MetalSeadramon crumpled like a paper towel.

"Yeah! Touchdown!" shouted Jeska.

"Ugh... you are powerful... I'll grant you that..." groaned Irvine. "But I have another form as well..."

"What?!" exclaimed Jeska, Earnest, and Leila at once. Irvine began laughing again.

"Yes! MetalSeadramon Mode Change!!!" he laughed triumphantly.

MetalSeadramon's data broke up and began reforming itself around Irvine to create a new Digimon! This Digimon was HUGE! It rivaled Machinedramon in size and made Leila look like an ant in comparison!

"Oh this is not good..." gasped Jeska.

"Earnest... I want you and Jeska to get as far back as possible..." Leila told them. "Watch from the other room if you have to!"

"Right..." agreed Earnest, still intimidated by the new form Irvine was taking. He and Jeska did as told, though.

The new form looked like a large armored grey warrior. His head was covered by a helmet, but he had tubes running all over his body into his arms. And the special thing about his arms was... they were both MetalSeadramon's!!!

"SIGMAMON!!!" bellowed Irvine. His voice was coming from both MetalSeadramon heads and the head of his body, so it had an echo to it! "Now do you believe you can win Guardian!?"

"Even if I don't... there is someone who can... Amara will defeat you!" shouted Leila. "She's the new Guardian!"

"What?" gasped Earnest. "You never told me that!"

"I didn't know where my Guardian powers had went until I read Amara's aura. She is the new Guardian," Leila told him. "I was in denial at first... but I'm still powerful, so she can take on the role!"

"Fool!" laughed Sigmamon. "Amara will soon be dead! It's been set up like that since I chose her to become a Yami Chosen! We also knew of her power... but her power will unlock OUR power!"

"How?" inquired Leila.

"Enough twenty questions!" shouted Irvine. Both of his MetalSeadramon heads went on either side of Leila, growling at her. "Time to feast!"

- - -

Speaking of Amara, she was still screaming on the ground of the floor she and Hieshi were on. After stumbling into the trap Irvine had set up, Amara was having every ounce of energy ripped from her being!

"Help!!!" she screamed. "I CAN'T BEAR IT!!!"

"Emeraldmon!" shouted Hieshi, talking to her since Rievermon was already knocked out. "Take out the aura syphoners!"

"Consider it done!" replied Amara's Ultimate level partner. "SWORD OF SERENITY!!!"

Emeraldmon spread her four emerald wings and took to the air, being careful to avoid the psionic bolts Amara was unwillingly throwing around the room. She went and slashed one of the syphoners attached to the roof, which looked like a simple tanning bed lamp.

She flew quickly and slashed a second one, and then came down on the third, slicing it in half with her blade. She turned for the fourth and final one.

"Look out!" cautioned Hieshi, but it was too late. Emeraldmon was blasted in the back by Amara's psionic bolt and sent crashing to the floor! She was unconscious.

"Damn it..." muttered Hieshi. "Just like what happened to Rievermon. Looks like it's up to me..."

He glanced up at the final syphoner on the roof. It was a looooong way up. He drew his katana and aimed it at the red glowing light.

"Moment of truth... if I miss... Amara dies. No pressure."

Hieshi hurled it like a javelin at the final syphoner. It almost looked like it wasn't going to make it... but luckily the tip of the blade just barely grazed the bottom of the syphoner, piercing it and causing it to no longer function.

Hieshi instantly ran to Amara and propped her head up. She coughed weakly and looked at him.

"Wow Hieshi... you saved someone..."

"Just making up for James," he replied. "But what the hell happened... and why was the energy being taken from just you?"

"I have a feeling we're going to find out..." groaned Amara. "Look..."

Amara pointed at the roof and Hieshi noticed that all the syphoners had a tube leading from them... and all the tubes led to the huge black door at the end of the room. He narrowed his eyes at it.

"This could be a problem..."

- - -

Leila leapt away from the MetalSeadramon heads, much more graceful in this form. She bounced off the wall and launched herself at Sigmamon, extending her lance in front of her!

"ELIOS THUNDER LANCE!!!"

Irvine laughed and simply bashed her aside with the right MetalSeadramon head. She landed on the floor, still ready to fight.

"Huh?" gasped Irvine, glancing upwards as if he sensed something. "No! NO! Not yet! She went in there too soon!"

"What is he babbling about?" wondered Jeska. Earnest shrugged.

"Whatever it is, I'm not liking his worried tone..."

"I have to go now! RIVER OF TERROR!!!" bellowed Irvine. He aimed both MetalSeadramon arms at Leila and blasted her point blank with a double River of Power! She smashed into the wall hard from the force of the blast and reverted back to her Child form.

"I'll be back for you two!" he yelled, leaping up through the hole he made in the roof when he came in. Earnest and Jeska were confused, yet relieved that he was gone.

"Alright! Lets shut the power to this spire down!" shouted Jeska.

"How?" asked Earnest. "Leila and Magemon are out cold and all this technology is foreign to us. We can't shut it down..."

"Well then... crap. We gotta be able to do something!"

"Let's go join Lee and the others. Hopefully they're having better luck than we are."

- - -

Meanwhile, Lunn strolled up to Lee, who was laying on the floor. He pointed the blade down at Lee and grinned.

"Oh how easy it would be to kill you now... but... to kill a fallen foe seems... weak," he said to himself. "I'll give you ten minutes to recuperate."

Lunn went and stood at the other end of the room in his mirrored form of SaintMachinedramon. And he waited.

i Ugh... I have to get up... /i thought Lee. i But I can't move... even though pain I take from SaintMachinedramon doesn't physically reflect into my human body... it still hurts. My body is all aching... I have no strength... /i 

i What would Ali think of me now...? I don't even know if she and the others are alright with Rathjen and Desiree still up there... what if something happened to them? What if I came back and they were all gone...? /i 

i No! I can't bear that! I will be back! There is no way I will let any of my friends down ever again! Amara, Hieshi, Earnest, and Jeska must be up against Irvine right now! I'll start by making sure they're safe! /i 

Lee groaned and coughed, pulling himself to his knees.

"Ready for round two?" asked Lunn, amused. "You took quite a beating last time... if you'd like to surrender, I could take you under my wing again."

"Go to... hell..." groaned Lee, collapsing forward onto his stomach again. Lunn sighed and walked over to the fallen Hikari Chosen and kicked him in the ribs! Lee tumbled across the floor and lay on his back, still hardly able to move.

"Leave him alone!" shouted Kokuwamon. "Mini Electro Shocker!!!"

Kokuwamon's static blast hit Lunn, doing little to no damage while he was in his SaintMachinedramon form. Lunn laughed and simply bashed the Child away with his foot.

"Well that was pathetic," said Lunn. "I may as well finish you off first. Then I'll go kill all your other friends one by one... starting with Amara..."

"Damn it... no! You want round two, you got it!"

Lee leapt to his feet with a burst of energy that came out of nowhere and ran across the room in the direction of Lunn and Kokuwamon. Lee dove past Lunn and grabbed Kokuwamon in his arm, then rolled back up to his feet and faced the karate master.

"I'm sick of you and your dementia! This ends now!" screamed Lee.

He and Kokuwamon began glowing and merged together into SaintMachinedramon yet again! The two identical Digimon faced off.

"Lee, my skills as a karate master are far greater than-- whoulf!"

Lee delivered a swift punch directly to Lunn's stomach! Lunn was stunned... this was the first time anyone had ever laid a finger on him!

"You-- how...?" stammered Lunn.

"This is what happens when you make us angry!" yelled Lee and Kokuwamon's voices as one. "HOLY CANNON!!!"

Lee quickly flipped up the cannon on his left arm, blasting Lunn upwards into the air. Lunn spread his wings so he wouldn't fall and prepared to counterattack.

"SHINING SWORD!" yelled Lunn. He swooped down at Lee, but he extended his own sword! The two locked blades, Lunn still in mid-air pressing Lee downwards!

"You... can't win... Lee! I am the greatest! You're just a child!"

"You're right about one thing... I can't win. But WE can!" yelled Lee. "Kokuwamon and I together! Hiyaaaah!"

Lee overpowered Lunn, slashing through his sword and giving Lunn a huge slash downwards across his chest. Lunn screamed and kicked Lee in the head, but it wasn't enough to put him down!

"Where are you drawing your strength from?!"

"Unlike you Lunn, I care about people... and that's something you'll never understand!"

"You don't have the power of the Shadow on your side though!" screamed Lunn, leaping at Lee again.

"I have the power of a whole collective! And you're about to feel it! SHINING SWORD!!!"

Lunn practically leapt right into it. Lee brought the blade of light crashing right through the shadow version of himself like a hot knife through butter. Lunn flew forward, still in his leap... and then the Shadow data exploded off of him. He crashed onto the crystalline floor of Infinity Spire.

"I have been beaten..." he growled, laying on his hands and knees on the floor. He slammed his fist on it. "No! Damn it! No! I cannot lose!"

"Lunn... I don't have to kill you now..." began Lee, lowering the sword next to his waist. "It will be very hard... but I can forgive you."

"You're such a sweet kid Lee..." growled Lunn, now in his human form. "But I will fight you to the end!"

Lunn turned and hurled a shrunken at SaintMachinedramon, who caught it in his right hand. He hurled it back just as swiftly and it stabbed Lunn in the neck. The once-proud karate master scientist slumped forward onto the floor. SaintMachinedramon stood over him, solemnly.

"Kokuwamon..."

"Yeah?"

"The student has become the teacher. Now let's go find the others!" he suggested.

SaintMachinedramon split back into Lee and Kokuwamon. The two of them turned to leave but Lee gave Lunn one last glance. How sad he looked, laying on the floor... with only broken pride and defeat as the symbol of his death.

"Bye Master Lunn..."

- - -

Hieshi and Amara stared in wonder as the tubes from each of the aura syphoners fed the energy they took from Amara into the large black door. Hieshi gave Amara some food that he carried with him so she could regain her strength, although they technically didn't have to eat while in this world.

"This is too weird..." gasped Hieshi.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?" bellowed an angry voice, catching both of them off-guard. Two MetalSeadramon heads burst through the floor in front of them.

"Ahhh!" screamed Amara. "What the hell?!"

"That's weird..."

The MetalSeadramon heads pushed themselves on the floor to hoist up Sigmamon's gigantic body through the floor! He glanced around the room at the broken aura syphoners and then at Amara and Hieshi.

"No! You fools!" screamed Irvine. "Amara wasn't supposed to come here yet!"

"What do you mean 'yet'? I want some answers!" demanded Amara. "What did you do to me!?"

"And you're not dead! This is especially horrible!" screamed Irvine, ignoring her.

"Well that depends on your point of view..." commented Hieshi.

"I have to kill you both, right now!" yelled Irvine. He pointed both MetalSeadramon heads at them and began to charge them up. "Don't worry! This WILL hurt!"

"Hieshi!" growled Rievermon, flying at him. He reverted to Levelermon and the small rubic cube bounced into Hieshi's arms!

"Whoa, what is it? Why'd you go back to Child form?!"

"We need to fuse! Now!"

"But we can't fuse!" protested Hieshi.

"Yes we can! Amara can give us the power to! She's a Guardian, and she has that power! That's how Lee and Ali fused, your willingness for them to win their battles with Green and Tammy made them fuse... right?" asked Levelermon. "Leila told me all about it!"

"He's... right... but I'm no Guard--"

"Now isn't the time for speculation! Just help us out!" shouted Hieshi.

"I-I'll try..." stammered Amara. i This is crazy! I didn't GIVE Lee and Ali the power to fuse... did I? Well we'll find out now... I wish Hieshi and Levelermon would defeat Irvine! /i 

And then they began to glow. Irvine fired off his cannons, but they were reflected by the light Hieshi and Levelermon were giving off.

"No! What is going on?!" snarled Irvine.

"LEVELERMON SHINKA!!!"

Hieshi's clothes ripped off and the small form of Levelermon fused into his chest! He became a new black Digimon with the top half of his face covered by a mask. Attached to his waist was a huge cubic base that held dozens of tentacles!

"APOKARIMON!!!"

"Whoa... I'm a Digimon!" exclaimed Hieshi, inspecting his new body. "You did it Amara!"

"Congratulate me AFTER you beat him!" shouted Amara, running to get out of the way. Sigmamon and Apokarimon faced off.

"You don't look so tough..." growled Hieshi.

"Then allow me to correct your vision! RIVER OF TERROR!!!"

Irvine blasted Hieshi with both of his MetalSeadramon heads, pushing Hieshi backwards across the floor! Hieshi quickly extended two tentacles from his base to catch the blasts, keeping him safe!

i Levelermon, you control the tentacles to cover us! /i 

i Right! /i 

Levelermon extended another tentacle, bashing Sigmamon's main body! He lost his focus on the blasts and Hieshi knew that was the time to strike! Lifting himself into the air with some unseen power, he began to hover in Irvine's direction!

"What?!" exclaimed Irvine. "No!"

"Yes!" shouted Hieshi. His main body on top of the base began to charge up a ball of dark energy in his hands. "DARK MATTER!!!"

He released the energy in Irvine's direction, sending the mighty Sigmamon crashing down onto his back!

i Ugh, I can't get up in this form! I'll have to mode-change back to MetalSeadramon! /i thought Irvine. "Mode-Change! MetalSeadramon!"

Irvine returned to his original form of the metallic sea serpent and slithered his way back upright. But he wasn't fast enough to mode-change again. Apokarimon slammed one tentacle in his neck and another one in his mid-body, pressing him up against the wall.

"Mode-Cha--urk!" choked Irvine as Hieshi and Levelermon pressed the tentacle tightly against his slithery neck.

"Oh no, you're stuck like this for a second," said Hieshi. "Until I do THIS!!!"

Hieshi crushed MetalSeadramon's neck and mid-section. Before long, the Shadow data around Irvine had deleted and he collapsed to the floor back in his human form. The forty-year old researcher gasped in amazement.

"That wasn't supposed to happen!"

"Oh it gets worse!" shouted Hieshi.

Apokarimon returned to the forms of Hieshi and Levelermon. Hieshi picked up his katana and slammed Irvine against the wall with his left hand, holding his katana in the air with his right hand.

"I'm going to enjoy this..." began Hieshi.

"Hieshi stop!" pleaded Amara. "You've beat him, you don't have to kill him! ... I thought you were changing..."

Hieshi froze. What WAS he doing? He dropped the katana on the floor and released Irvine. Irvine slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor, scared for his life. Amara walked over and patted Hieshi on the back.

"Thanks Hieshi," she told him. She then turned to Irvine. "No more secrets. You don't have Shadow data in you anymore, so I'm reading your mind!"

Amara knelt down in front of him and concentrated on Irvine only. After a moment, she gasped in horror.

"What is it?" questioned Hieshi.

"Those aura syphoners... they were built to take my energy and use it to power up their machine that would steal all the Shadow data from the comatose DarkNitemon."

"Why yours?"

"Irvine doesn't even KNOW! He's just doing what Desiree told him. But there's a problem... a BIG problem..."

"Yes," agreed Irvine, getting off the floor. "And I need to stop it now!"

Irvine turned and ran over to a control console he'd set up next to the large black door. Hieshi looked the door over carefully and it was inscribed with what he guessed were holy symbols.

"What is the problem?" asked Hieshi, feeling uneasy.

"There are two," sighed Amara, sadly. "First off, he hadn't finished installing the program yet... so it took my energy ahead of the planned time-- like when we wandered into this room."

"And two?"

"This is the kicker... since he didn't install that program... there won't be a transfer of my energy for Shadow data. Instead... my energy is just going in there!"

"And that's bad why? It sounds good!"

"No it isn't!" screamed Irvine hysterically. "Instead of an energy exchange, Amara's energy is going to revive DarkNitemon!!! And I can't stop it in--"

There was a loud smashing noise. Amara, Hieshi, and Irvine all fell silent. The noise came from behind the black door.

"What... was that...?" gasped Hieshi.

"Yo! Amara, Hieshi!" they heard Lee yell.

They turned back to see Lee, Jeska, Earnest, and their partners run up behind them. They were all reunited once more. There was another smashing noise, followed by another hysterical scream from Irvine.

"What's got flood-pants in a snitch?" wondered Jeska, pointing at Irvine.

She didn't get an answer. The black doors containing DarkNitemon slowly began to creak open. All of them looked up in awe as blinding light came out of it.

"No!" exclaimed Leila. "He accidentally revived-- no, he couldn't have!"

"Oh he did!" replied Amara. "With MY energy!"

"Can't we ever just win for once?" asked Lee.

Irvine backed away from the door, frightened for his life. Suddenly, a tendril of energy shot out of the door and stabbed into Irvine! He screamed in agony and was absorbed into it! All five Chosen screamed as Irvine was killed! They could see the outline of what appeared to be a female figure in the door.

"Hmm..." mused a female voice that had the same eerie Shadow sound as Tammy's or Desiree's. "It's a shame to lose such a convenient pawn... even if he was more than a little crazy."

"Are you DarkNitemon!?" demanded Earnest bravely, though there was fear in his voice.

"What does it matter? What good does it do the cow to know the name of the butcher, it's still going to end up as steak."

"She's... a chick..." gasped Hieshi in amazement as he backed away.

"That was one of the three holy ones... but Seraphimon and DarkNitemon were forced to seal her away when she created the Shadow..." Jeska told them, relaying information Seraphimon told her earlier.

"SHE created the Shadow!?" exclaimed Lee. "She's responsible for all of this!"

"Yes," she said, laughing as she began to exit her prison. "And you'll all pay for trifling with the Shadow! Right NOW!!!"

End Arc Two.


	32. Shattered

-1"My my... Irvine messed up and released DarkNitemon instead of getting more Shadow Data for me..."

Desiree grinned madly as she cast her pale face upon the screen that was showing video from the computer Irvine set up in Infinity Spire. She laughed wickedly as she watched the five Chosen cower in fear.

"Of course, things will progress so much more interesting like this...! Hehe! With DarkNitemon wiping those whelps out on that end..."

Desiree flicked screens so that the video was now coming from Tammy's D-Volver. ArcaDemon was approaching Ali, Ace, Arik, and Nathan, preparing to kill them.

"... and Tammy killing those fools, all I will have to do is kill DarkNitemon myself! Then I'll be the most powerful being on two worlds! Thanks Irvine, Lunn, Rathjen, and Green... your belief in my false promises really helped me out! Ahahahaha!"

Desiree span around in his chair and faced the screen again.

"Now let the show commence."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Thirty-One: Shattered /u /b 

DarkNitemon was fine example of a femme fatale. An average-sized female warrior, she oozed evil and power. Long black leather boots ran up her legs, stopping just below her knees, and further up was a thong to cover her crotch (and not much of her ass) that kept with the same color scheme. Black strings ran up from that and attached to a small winged bra -- like Angewomon's except looking like demon wings instead of angel wings -- that covered her breasts.

She had gloves of the same color and two large demonic wings sprouted from her back and curled around her fine form. Finally, her face. She looked like any female Digimon, except she had a black mask that covered only her eyes and wrapped around her head. Long red hair ran down her body, stopping at her thighs. Finally, she extended her arms and black spikes ran out of the tops of those and her legs, adding a sense of danger to her presence.

She moved her ruby red lips to speak, looking over them as if she could see them through the mask. A smile crept along her face.

"Hikari Chosen. Agents of Seraphimon. Enemies of the Shadow. Your exploits have been long recorded in my internal membrane. With my release, I am now aware of every treason you have committed against my babies."

Lee, Earnest, Hieshi, Jeska, Amara, and their partners all stared at DarkNitemon in horror. They had heard horrible things about this Digimon.

"Your babies?" asked Lee, sarcastically. "You might've raised them better."

"Lee Trainer, you are the biggest offender of all," she told him. "You single handedly killed my first child: Emperor Shadow."

"I did do that..." gasped Lee. "But that was a long time ago..."

"Yes, and--" began DarkNitemon, but she stopped. She had spotted someone much more interesting in the crowd of five. Her face turned to a look of shock. "YOU?!"

"Me?" gasped Amara, frightened.

"So... heh heh... you're still alive..." chuckled DarkNitemon. "Oh, how you could've betrayed me like that... it's sad to think that one of my own could join up with those boring fools: Seraphimon and DeathXmon."

"One of your own? What do you mean?" wondered Amara.

"You don't remember? Well it has been eighteen years and you don't seem to have aged a bit. Is it possible you were reborn...?" mused DarkNitemon, stroking her chin as she hovered above them.

"I expect no less from you... but we'll have to talk -- and kill you -- in a few moments. I was just reminded of something else I have to take care of first. Ta ta!"

DarkNitemon laughed evilly and flew upwards, bursting out of the crystal roof of her own spire. All the on looking Chosen and Digimon stared at it for a few seconds before finally recovering from the shock.

"Man, she was hot," said Hieshi, breaking the silence.

"Hot?!" exclaimed Jeska. "Are you on drugs?! That's the biggest psycho known in Trinity Server!"

"So what? How does that stop her from being hot?"

Jeska sighed and laid Hieshi on the floor with a punch to the face. Then she turned back to Earnest and Lee, who were trying to come up with ideas of what to do.

"Boys, we need a plan."

"We know that," replied Earnest. "But we don't even know how powerful DarkNitemon is..."

"I'd guess pretty powerful, you saw what she did to Irvine. She kinda absorbed him..." remembered Lee. "It was freaky."

"What do you think Amara?" asked Jeska, turning to the other female of the group. Amara was too caught up in her own thoughts to even hear Jeska. "Yo! Space case! AMARA!"

"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry Jeska. What?"

"Ah never mind. Go back to fantasizing about Lee or whatever it is you're doing," Jeska told her, turning back to the boys. Amara sighed.

i They don't understand... DarkNitemon isn't like the scientists... she's pure Shadow and pure evil. I'm starting to remember this now, but it's fuzzy... /i 

"Hey guys... where did DarkNitemon go anyway?" wondered Hieshi, picking himself up off the floor. Jeska gasped.

"The only other places here are Yami and Hikari Spires... oh no..."

"Alright, she's going to be back once she does whatever she's doing to Seraphimon and DeathXmon!" shouted Earnest. "And that's when we'll hit her hard! But Irvine must've made an emergency exit... in case of an emergency."

"This is an emergency," added Hieshi.

Earnest gave him a blank stare.

"Yes, anyway. Amara, you seem pretty shaken up... so why don't you go hunt it down?" suggested Earnest. Amara glanced at them, and Lee nodded in agreement.

"I don't want you to get hurt, so Earnest's idea is good," Lee told her. "Once you find it, hit the distress button on your D-Volver. We'll run like hell."

"Why do we have to run?" asked Hieshi.

"Cuz we'll get slaughtered. Dork," Jeska said. "We can only hold her off until we come up with a plan... and we need to escape and get re-enforcements."

"Uh-huh... alright... I'll go do that..." mumbled Amara, picking up Crystalmon and wandering off into the Spire. Lee and the others watched her go and then returned to formulating a battle plan.

- - -

At that moment, in Hikari Spire, DeathXmon and Seraphimon were waiting patiently for news of the Chosen's attack on the scientists. DeathXmon hovered back and forth in the holy walls impatiently while Seraphimon stood still, watching him.

"Are you ever going to stop that?"

"Never! Not until I know our world is safe! I'm going to help them!" shouted DeathXmon, angrily. He turned to leave when suddenly they heard something on the roof. "... what was that?"

"I've not the faintest..."

Suddenly half of the roof ripped off! Revealing the black gridded sky and a devilish-looking DarkNitemon! Both Seraphimon and DeathXmon tensed up in fear.

"Hello boys! Did ya miss me?!"

"DarkNitemon! But how?" exclaimed Seraphimon.

"Who cares! We'll destroy her here and now!" yelled DeathXmon, charging up an attack in his palms. "Her evil cannot be tolera--"

"Silence, fool! It's time to teach you what it feels like to be imprisoned!" she yelled, announcing an attack of her own. "FROZEN SOUL!!!"

She blasted both Seraphimon and DeathXmon with a dark energy and it began to swirl around them until it formed a cocoon around them!

"I... cannot move...!" exclaimed Seraphimon.

"Me either! What treachery is this?!"

DarkNitemon hurled both of their stiff bodies high into the air above Alpha Server! She swirled her hands around in a smooth motion, encapsulating them both in a large shell of Shadow data. When she was finished, both of them were trapped inside a solid black cube that they would remain in for the rest of their days.

"Ahahaha! Oh that's rich!" she laughed. She span around in the air playfully and aimed both of her hands behind her. One at Hikari Spire and one at Yami Spire. "DOOM BLASTER!!!"

Both spires were struck by dark energy orbs and exploded upon impact! She laughed madly as the two spires went down in flames. She took one last glance at the orb in the sky and wiggled her fingers at it.

"Bye boys! Now I ain't blowing up my own spire, but I do have one more insect to squash. My own wretched daughter! Ahahaha!"

DarkNitemon shot downwards back through the hole she made earlier in her own spire. Upon entering she was greeted very formally...

"HOLY CANNON!!!"

"DARK MATTER!!!"

She was hit by both blasts head-on, courtesy of Lee and Hieshi who had bio-merged with their partners into SaintMachinedramon and Apokarimon! She flew upwards with the blasts until she giggled madly and flung them aside! She glanced down at her new opponents.

"My my... humans merging with Digimon... what an easy way to kill two at once..."

"You won't get that chance!" shouted Leila (in WarRenamon Valkyrie Mode). She ran up the wall and did a backwards flip off of it in DarkNitemon's direction, taking her by surprise!

"What the hell?!"

"ELIOS TORNADO LANCE!!!"

Leila bashed DarkNitemon with the lance across the shoulder! DarkNitemon grinned and grabbed the lance in mid-air, leaving Leila hanging on it.

"Former guardian, eh? I get to dispose of more important Digimon today than I thought!" she mused. She slugged Leila in the face sending the beautiful Ultimate plummeting down to the ground! She swung the lance around skillfully. "Nice weapon..."

"Too bad you won't get to use it!" yelled a hybrid of Lee and Kokuwamon's voice. "SHINING SWORD!!!"

Lee extended the light blade, but DarkNitemon simply shrugged him aside and hurled the lance at him. He was smashed across the head with it and sent crashing downwards as well! He reverted back into Lee and Kokuwamon.

"This isn't going good... is it...?" mumbled Jeska, standing down at the bottom of the room with Earnest, who was also stressed.

i Damn that sexy psycho! /i growled Hieshi inside Apokarimon. i Levelermon, any ideas? /i 

i Let's change our names and move to Tahiti? /i 

i That's not helpfu-- oh crap she's coming for us now! /i 

DarkNitemon was indeed soaring down at them, intending to make Apokarimon her next target! Morphlingmon ran next to Apokarimon and extended both his hands quickly!

"INVULNERABILITY!" he screamed. DarkNitemon flew headlong into the invisible barrier raised by Morphlingmon, knocking herself straight onto the floor! She groaned and muttered a few curse words, extremely woozy from the impact.

"Hey, the distress signal on my D-Volver is going off!" shouted Earnest. "Amara found the exit! Let's get out of here while she's stunned!"

"We won't make it far!" protested Lee. "I'll stay behind and distract her! You guys go!"

"Are you nuts?!" exclaimed Jeska. "I'll stay! Morphlingmon can protect us!"

"No... I'm staying," Hieshi told them, still in Apokarimon form. "I'm the only one who can still fight! And I'm the only one who has nothing to go back to!"

DarkNitemon groaned and Hieshi quickly bashed her back into the ground hard with one of the mechanical tentacles from his base to keep her dizzy.

"But--" began Jeska.

"No buts! Just go! NOW!!!"

Jeska reluctantly turned and pulled out her D-Volver, using its' compass to direct her in Amara's direction. Morphlingmon turned to join her.

"Be careful Hieshi..." she sighed.

"I will."

"Yeah," Lee told him. "The second you get an opening, I want you to follow us, okay? We will meet again! I'm sure of it!"

Lee and Kokuwamon turned and joined Jeska and Morphlingmon. Earnest and Leila gathered with them as well.

"... good luck," was all Earnest said. He was acting like he didn't care, but it was just that. Acting.

The group of them turned and ran in the direction of Jeska's compass, searching for the exit. Hieshi and Levelermon sighed, knowing that there was no way they'd survive this.

i Hieshi, you've changed alot... the old Hieshi would never do this for anyone... /i Levelermon told him.

i It's that damn redhead. She's making me soft. /i 

i Well either way... we do have a chance to defeat DarkNitemon! Let's attack with everything we've got, Hieshi! /i 

i Now you're talking! /i 

"DarkNitemon!!!" they shouted to her as she was attempting to stand up. "Time to see a very special skill! PETRIFICATION!!!"

Hieshi blasted her with four concentrated beams from his mechanical tentacles, encapsulating her in stone! She was turned into a mere statue of her former self, frozen!

"Yes! Looks like we sealed her up again!"

"Wrong!" shouted her voice. The stone shattered off of her body and she glared upwards at Apokarimon. "All you succeeded in doing was making me angry! And that's NOT something you want to do!!!"

DarkNitemon threw an energy attack at Hieshi. It was so powerful that it made half of Infinity Spire behind him collapse in the ensuing explosion. After the smoke cleared, DarkNitemon was the only one still standing.

"One down... four to go..."

- - -

"Did you hear that explosion?!" exclaimed Lee as the group of them darted down the crystal hallways.

"No, it only made me half-deaf!" shouted Jeska back sarcastically.

They weaved in and out of hallways and even took some shortcuts by getting Leila to blow apart some walls for them to leap through! But Amara's blip on the compass was still quite a bit away from them.

"It boggles my mind that HE would sacrifice himself for us," Earnest shot out between gasps for air.

"You know what? You can stick your attitude!" shouted Jeska. "If it wasn't for him, we'd be--"

"Hello children!!!" they heard a female voice shout from behind them.

"... dead... right... now...?" she gasped in shock. "Oh crap."

"What did you do to Hieshi?!" demanded Lee as DarkNitemon flew at them. She stopped a few meters away, flapping her strong demon wings as she glanced down upon them.

"Oh? Your little friend. I'm afraid I blew him to pieces. And you're next."

"You bitch!" shouted Earnest. Lee and Jeska gasped. They'd never heard him swear before... he was usually so calm and collective. "I'll teach you a lesson about what it means to respect life! Leila!"

"GAIA THUNDER EARTHQUAKE!!!"

WarRenamon Valkyrie Mode split the floor between them and DarkNitemon and caused thunder to pour out of the artificial fissure! It all blasted directly into the demonic queen, causing her to scream in agony!

"Go now!" Earnest told them. "Leila can hold her off!"

"You can come with us!" pleaded Lee.

"I stay with Leila! I waited a long time to get her back and I'll stay with her to the end!" he told them. There was sorrow in his eyes, but he knew he had to do this. "Don't look back! Now get out of here!"

"... okay..." agreed Lee, solemnly. He didn't want to leave his friend behind, but Jeska grabbed his arm and dragged him along with her. Earnest faced DarkNitemon, who was still getting shock therapy from Leila.

"Leila, we can do this!"

"I know Earnest!" she replied. "We'll avenge Hieshi and everyone else this wench has poisoned with the Shadow!"

DarkNitemon was getting very ticked off that a low-class Digimon like Leila was even able to harm her. She put aside the pain and shakily aimed her finger at Valkyrie Mode.

"FROZEN SOUL!!!"

She blasted Leila with the same freezing darkness she used on Seraphimon and DeathXmon earlier, freezing her in place! The thunder stopped and DarkNitemon was given a moment to catch her breath.

"No! Let her go!" demanded Earnest.

DarkNitemon simply flew down and picked Earnest up by his neck. He gagged and kicked at her, but to no avail. She grinned psychotically.

"When I'm done with you... that Digimon will be the last thing on your pathetic mind..."

- - -

Jeska and Lee were getting very close to the blip representing Amara's D-Volver -- and the exit back to their world! Jeska glanced behind them to see Kokuwamon flying in the air after them and Morphlingmon running the furthest behind.

"Our forces are getting small!" shouted Jeska, worriedly. "You have to have some sort of plan by now!"

"I'm drawing a blank!"

"Don't these things always work out for you?!"

"The ratio of wins to losses is good!"

"I don't like the word ratio..." muttered Jeska. She checked the compass on her D-Volver and smiled. "We aren't far from the psychic bimbo! Then we're home free!"

Jeska slowed her pace so Morphlingmon could keep up with her and Lee and Kokuwamon took point with Lee's own compass. Lee then noticed Jeska was falling behind.

"Jeska! Don't separate from me! Because--"

The floor in between them burst open, cutting Lee off from Jeska! DarkNitemon hovered up from it, slowly. She was holding Leila's lance again, twirling it around like a baton.

"You know, I do like this lance..." she said, tossing it into the air and catching it with her arm in a javelin-throwing position. "Catch."

She hurled it at Jeska, who screamed! Luckily, Morphlingmon reflected it with his Invulnerability attack. Jeska gathered up all her courage and prepared to square off with that psycho.

"Lee! Keep running! I don't want any sappy goodbye! Just go! Go to the people you love!"

"I--"

"What did I JUST say? Don't make me kick your ass!"

Lee bit his lip and did as she told. Kokuwamon saluted Jeska and Morphlingmon, then turned to follow his partner. DarkNitemon laughed in amusement.

"Please. If the first two didn't make it, what makes you think you will? Not that it really matters to me anyway..."

"Well I'm counting on the fact that they've worn you down," Jeska told her, assuming a defensive stance. "Besides, you're a whore. I don't like those."

"Have it your way..."

DarkNitemon soared in Jeska direction, but Morphlingmon tackled her! DarkNitemon kicked the armored Digimon off, but he bounced off the wall and rebounded at her! He clothes lined her, knocking her over!

Unfortunately his efforts weren't enough. She leapt back up and grabbed him by the ankle. She whipped him across the hallway, sending him smashing through the wall! Jeska gasped and took a few steps away from the psycho Digimon.

"See what bravery gets you? Prepare yourself and your little mouth to join your friends in hell!" she yelled, smacking Jeska across the face and knocking her to the ground.

She extended long talons from each of her finger and aimed them downwards at Jeska. "Three down... two to go..."

- - -

Lee was the only one left. It was tearing at him inside how Jeska, Earnest, and Hieshi sacrificed themselves while he was forced to do nothing because Kokuwamon lost his strength after being bashed earlier. He balled his fists in anger.

"It's not fair, Kokuwamon! It should be Jeska here right now instead of me! I can't stand the thought of this! If I wasn't so busy being scared of DarkNitemon right now I'd probly break down and cry."

"Let's not worry about that right now, they did what they felt was right," Kokuwamon told him to try and calm him. "Look! There's Amara and Crystalmon!"

"Where are the others?" asked Amara.

"They're gone," replied Lee, darting past her. In the room she had found there was a small generator portal. It didn't appear to be active though. "Is this the machine?"

"Wait? They're gone?!" exclaimed Amara, running over to him. "What do you mean?"

"They fought. They lost. We'll lose too if we don't hurry! Turn this thing on!" shouted Lee. "Now!"

Amara gulped, intimidated by Lee's seriousness at this moment. She reached down and found the on switch. The air began to ripple between the top and bottom of the machine, signaling it was active.

"Irvine did bring this technology with him in case of an emergency, so it must work," Amara told Lee, remembering back to when she was with Lunn and Irvine. "He was being overly cautious about this whole thing.

"That's great," replied Lee calmly, a million shots going through his head. He knew what he was going to do. "Can I see Crystalmon for a second?"

The crystal cat walked over to Lee and he picked her up and swiftly threw her into the portal! Amara gasped in shock as Lee grabbed her by the arm and pulled her close to him. She looked upwards into his eyes, which seemed very confused.

"Lee... what are you...?"

"Tell Ali I'm sorry. Tell Ace and the others I'm sorry. And Amara... I'm sorry."

"For what? Lee-- no! Don't you dare--"

Lee turned and hurled her into the portal! Her scream of 'LEEEEE!!!" trailed off as she disappeared back into their own world. Kokuwamon gasped and landed next to Lee.

"Lee..."

"Kokuwamon, destroy the portal. DarkNitemon will not get into our world and harm Amara, Ali, or anyone!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, now do it!"

"MINI-ELECTRO SHOCKER!!!" responded Kokuwamon, blasting the portal with electricity. It exploded in response and Lee just stared at it in dismay. "Lee, you had the choice to leave... but you sacrificed yourself to save them. I've never seen you be so mature."

"We aren't dead yet! We'll avenge the others! Now let's fuse! I know you have the energy in you somewhere!"

Kokuwamon attempted to merge with Lee... but couldn't. He looked up at Lee sadly.

"Sorry... nope."

"What?!"

A shadow was cast of them, and they turned to see DarkNitemon standing in the doorway. They both froze.

"J-Jeska... is..."

"Gone. And so are you."

- - -

Amara found herself laying on the ground back in Tamur. She groaned and pulled herself up, checking her surroundings. Crystalmon was laying a little bit away from her, recovering from the world warp. She determined she was in Central Park, laying on the grass.

"Ugh... no... I can't believe Lee did that! What a moron!" she said to herself, almost crying. "Now I'll never see him agai-- What? I sense... pain."

Amara focused her thoughts, trying to read the minds of the familiar ones that were shooting through her head, crying for help. It didn't take long before she recognized them.

"Ali... and Ace... and Nathan and Arik! They're in trouble! They.. won't make it...!" she gasped. She leapt to her feet and began to wake Crystalmon.

"Personally... I don't care what happens to Ali. It'd be a blessing if she was out of my way. But Lee if he was still with us... would be crushed if anything happened to those four! I'll save them for you Lee! I promise you that!"

Shaking off her nervousness, Amara and Crystalmon began to make a mad dash for the harbor...

- - -

DarkNitemon now stood alone. The only breathing thing left in Alpha Server. She glanced down at the wrecked transporter.

"Looks like my wretched spawn escaped from my clutches..." she muttered, half-annoyed, half-amused. "That's alright. It will be all the more fun to hunt her down once I escape from the prison that is this world."

She spread her wings and began to take to the sky. She glanced up at the orb that contained Seraphimon and DeathXmon.

"All I have to do is find a way... and perhaps using their power will help me..."


	33. The Cure, Part One

"My my... Irvine messed up and released DarkNitemon instead of getting more Shadow Data for me..."

Desiree grinned madly as she cast her pale face upon the screen that was showing video from the computer Irvine set up in Infinity Spire. She laughed wickedly as she watched the five Chosen cower in fear.

"Of course, things will progress so much more interesting like this...! Hehe! With DarkNitemon wiping those whelps out on that end..."

Desiree flicked screens so that the video was now coming from Tammy's D-Volver. ArcaDemon was approaching Ali, Ace, Arik, and Nathan, preparing to kill them.

"... and Tammy killing those fools, all I will have to do is kill DarkNitemon myself! Then I'll be the most powerful being on two worlds! Thanks Irvine, Lunn, Rathjen, and Green... your belief in my false promises really helped me out! Ahahahaha!"

Desiree span around in his chair and faced the screen again.

"Now let the show commence."

b u Heroes & Villains, Chapter Thirty-One: Shattered /u /b

DarkNitemon was fine example of a femme fatale. An average-sized female warrior, she oozed evil and power. Long black leather boots ran up her legs, stopping just below her knees, and further up was a thong to cover her crotch (and not much of her ass) that kept with the same color scheme. Black strings ran up from that and attached to a small winged bra -- like Angewomon's except looking like demon wings instead of angel wings -- that covered her breasts.

She had gloves of the same color and two large demonic wings sprouted from her back and curled around her fine form. Finally, her face. She looked like any female Digimon, except she had a black mask that covered only her eyes and wrapped around her head. Long red hair ran down her body, stopping at her thighs. Finally, she extended her arms and black spikes ran out of the tops of those and her legs, adding a sense of danger to her presence.

She moved her ruby red lips to speak, looking over them as if she could see them through the mask. A smile crept along her face.

"Hikari Chosen. Agents of Seraphimon. Enemies of the Shadow. Your exploits have been long recorded in my internal membrane. With my release, I am now aware of every treason you have committed against my babies."

Lee, Earnest, Hieshi, Jeska, Amara, and their partners all stared at DarkNitemon in horror. They had heard horrible things about this Digimon.

"Your babies?" asked Lee, sarcastically. "You might've raised them better."

"Lee Trainer, you are the biggest offender of all," she told him. "You single handedly killed my first child: Emperor Shadow."

"I did do that..." gasped Lee. "But that was a long time ago..."

"Yes, and--" began DarkNitemon, but she stopped. She had spotted someone much more interesting in the crowd of five. Her face turned to a look of shock. "YOU?!"

"Me?" gasped Amara, frightened.

"So... heh heh... you're still alive..." chuckled DarkNitemon. "Oh, how you could've betrayed me like that... it's sad to think that one of my own could join up with those boring fools: Seraphimon and DeathXmon."

"One of your own? What do you mean?" wondered Amara.

"You don't remember? Well it has been eighteen years and you don't seem to have aged a bit. Is it possible you were reborn...?" mused DarkNitemon, stroking her chin as she hovered above them.

"I expect no less from you... but we'll have to talk -- and kill you -- in a few moments. I was just reminded of something else I have to take care of first. Ta ta!"

DarkNitemon laughed evilly and flew upwards, bursting out of the crystal roof of her own spire. All the on looking Chosen and Digimon stared at it for a few seconds before finally recovering from the shock.

"Man, she was hot," said Hieshi, breaking the silence.

"Hot?!" exclaimed Jeska. "Are you on drugs?! That's the biggest psycho known in Trinity Server!"

"So what? How does that stop her from being hot?"

Jeska sighed and laid Hieshi on the floor with a punch to the face. Then she turned back to Earnest and Lee, who were trying to come up with ideas of what to do.

"Boys, we need a plan."

"We know that," replied Earnest. "But we don't even know how powerful DarkNitemon is..."

"I'd guess pretty powerful, you saw what she did to Irvine. She kinda absorbed him..." remembered Lee. "It was freaky."

"What do you think Amara?" asked Jeska, turning to the other female of the group. Amara was too caught up in her own thoughts to even hear Jeska. "Yo! Space case! AMARA!"

"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry Jeska. What?"

"Ah never mind. Go back to fantasizing about Lee or whatever it is you're doing," Jeska told her, turning back to the boys. Amara sighed.

i They don't understand... DarkNitemon isn't like the scientists... she's pure Shadow and pure evil. I'm starting to remember this now, but it's fuzzy... /i

"Hey guys... where did DarkNitemon go anyway?" wondered Hieshi, picking himself up off the floor. Jeska gasped.

"The only other places here are Yami and Hikari Spires... oh no..."

"Alright, she's going to be back once she does whatever she's doing to Seraphimon and DeathXmon!" shouted Earnest. "And that's when we'll hit her hard! But Irvine must've made an emergency exit... in case of an emergency."

"This is an emergency," added Hieshi.

Earnest gave him a blank stare.

"Yes, anyway. Amara, you seem pretty shaken up... so why don't you go hunt it down?" suggested Earnest. Amara glanced at them, and Lee nodded in agreement.

"I don't want you to get hurt, so Earnest's idea is good," Lee told her. "Once you find it, hit the distress button on your D-Volver. We'll run like hell."

"Why do we have to run?" asked Hieshi.

"Cuz we'll get slaughtered. Dork," Jeska said. "We can only hold her off until we come up with a plan... and we need to escape and get re-enforcements."

"Uh-huh... alright... I'll go do that..." mumbled Amara, picking up Crystalmon and wandering off into the Spire. Lee and the others watched her go and then returned to formulating a battle plan.

- - -

At that moment, in Hikari Spire, DeathXmon and Seraphimon were waiting patiently for news of the Chosen's attack on the scientists. DeathXmon hovered back and forth in the holy walls impatiently while Seraphimon stood still, watching him.

"Are you ever going to stop that?"

"Never! Not until I know our world is safe! I'm going to help them!" shouted DeathXmon, angrily. He turned to leave when suddenly they heard something on the roof. "... what was that?"

"I've not the faintest..."

Suddenly half of the roof ripped off! Revealing the black gridded sky and a devilish-looking DarkNitemon! Both Seraphimon and DeathXmon tensed up in fear.

"Hello boys! Did ya miss me?!"

"DarkNitemon! But how?" exclaimed Seraphimon.

"Who cares! We'll destroy her here and now!" yelled DeathXmon, charging up an attack in his palms. "Her evil cannot be tolera--"

"Silence, fool! It's time to teach you what it feels like to be imprisoned!" she yelled, announcing an attack of her own. "FROZEN SOUL!!!"

She blasted both Seraphimon and DeathXmon with a dark energy and it began to swirl around them until it formed a cocoon around them!

"I... cannot move...!" exclaimed Seraphimon.

"Me either! What treachery is this?!"

DarkNitemon hurled both of their stiff bodies high into the air above Alpha Server! She swirled her hands around in a smooth motion, encapsulating them both in a large shell of Shadow data. When she was finished, both of them were trapped inside a solid black cube that they would remain in for the rest of their days.

"Ahahaha! Oh that's rich!" she laughed. She span around in the air playfully and aimed both of her hands behind her. One at Hikari Spire and one at Yami Spire. "DOOM BLASTER!!!"

Both spires were struck by dark energy orbs and exploded upon impact! She laughed madly as the two spires went down in flames. She took one last glance at the orb in the sky and wiggled her fingers at it.

"Bye boys! Now I ain't blowing up my own spire, but I do have one more insect to squash. My own wretched daughter! Ahahaha!"

DarkNitemon shot downwards back through the hole she made earlier in her own spire. Upon entering she was greeted very formally...

"HOLY CANNON!!!"

"DARK MATTER!!!"

She was hit by both blasts head-on, courtesy of Lee and Hieshi who had bio-merged with their partners into SaintMachinedramon and Apokarimon! She flew upwards with the blasts until she giggled madly and flung them aside! She glanced down at her new opponents.

"My my... humans merging with Digimon... what an easy way to kill two at once..."

"You won't get that chance!" shouted Leila (in WarRenamon Valkyrie Mode). She ran up the wall and did a backwards flip off of it in DarkNitemon's direction, taking her by surprise!

"What the hell?!"

"ELIOS TORNADO LANCE!!!"

Leila bashed DarkNitemon with the lance across the shoulder! DarkNitemon grinned and grabbed the lance in mid-air, leaving Leila hanging on it.

"Former guardian, eh? I get to dispose of more important Digimon today than I thought!" she mused. She slugged Leila in the face sending the beautiful Ultimate plummeting down to the ground! She swung the lance around skillfully. "Nice weapon..."

"Too bad you won't get to use it!" yelled a hybrid of Lee and Kokuwamon's voice. "SHINING SWORD!!!"

Lee extended the light blade, but DarkNitemon simply shrugged him aside and hurled the lance at him. He was smashed across the head with it and sent crashing downwards as well! He reverted back into Lee and Kokuwamon.

"This isn't going good... is it...?" mumbled Jeska, standing down at the bottom of the room with Earnest, who was also stressed.

i Damn that sexy psycho/i growled Hieshi inside Apokarimon. i Levelermon, any ideas/i

i Let's change our names and move to Tahiti/i

i That's not helpfu-- oh crap she's coming for us now/i

DarkNitemon was indeed soaring down at them, intending to make Apokarimon her next target! Morphlingmon ran next to Apokarimon and extended both his hands quickly!

"INVULNERABILITY!" he screamed. DarkNitemon flew headlong into the invisible barrier raised by Morphlingmon, knocking herself straight onto the floor! She groaned and muttered a few curse words, extremely woozy from the impact.

"Hey, the distress signal on my D-Volver is going off!" shouted Earnest. "Amara found the exit! Let's get out of here while she's stunned!"

"We won't make it far!" protested Lee. "I'll stay behind and distract her! You guys go!"

"Are you nuts?!" exclaimed Jeska. "I'll stay! Morphlingmon can protect us!"

"No... I'm staying," Hieshi told them, still in Apokarimon form. "I'm the only one who can still fight! And I'm the only one who has nothing to go back to!"

DarkNitemon groaned and Hieshi quickly bashed her back into the ground hard with one of the mechanical tentacles from his base to keep her dizzy.

"But--" began Jeska.

"No buts! Just go! NOW!!!"

Jeska reluctantly turned and pulled out her D-Volver, using its' compass to direct her in Amara's direction. Morphlingmon turned to join her.

"Be careful Hieshi..." she sighed.

"I will."

"Yeah," Lee told him. "The second you get an opening, I want you to follow us, okay? We will meet again! I'm sure of it!"

Lee and Kokuwamon turned and joined Jeska and Morphlingmon. Earnest and Leila gathered with them as well.

"... good luck," was all Earnest said. He was acting like he didn't care, but it was just that. Acting.

The group of them turned and ran in the direction of Jeska's compass, searching for the exit. Hieshi and Levelermon sighed, knowing that there was no way they'd survive this.

i Hieshi, you've changed alot... the old Hieshi would never do this for anyone... /i Levelermon told him.

i It's that damn redhead. She's making me soft. /i

i Well either way... we do have a chance to defeat DarkNitemon! Let's attack with everything we've got, Hieshi/i

i Now you're talking/i

"DarkNitemon!!!" they shouted to her as she was attempting to stand up. "Time to see a very special skill! PETRIFICATION!!!"

Hieshi blasted her with four concentrated beams from his mechanical tentacles, encapsulating her in stone! She was turned into a mere statue of her former self, frozen!

"Yes! Looks like we sealed her up again!"

"Wrong!" shouted her voice. The stone shattered off of her body and she glared upwards at Apokarimon. "All you succeeded in doing was making me angry! And that's NOT something you want to do!!!"

DarkNitemon threw an energy attack at Hieshi. It was so powerful that it made half of Infinity Spire behind him collapse in the ensuing explosion. After the smoke cleared, DarkNitemon was the only one still standing.

"One down... four to go..."

- - -

"Did you hear that explosion?!" exclaimed Lee as the group of them darted down the crystal hallways.

"No, it only made me half-deaf!" shouted Jeska back sarcastically.

They weaved in and out of hallways and even took some shortcuts by getting Leila to blow apart some walls for them to leap through! But Amara's blip on the compass was still quite a bit away from them.

"It boggles my mind that HE would sacrifice himself for us," Earnest shot out between gasps for air.

"You know what? You can stick your attitude!" shouted Jeska. "If it wasn't for him, we'd be--"

"Hello children!!!" they heard a female voice shout from behind them.

"... dead... right... now...?" she gasped in shock. "Oh crap."

"What did you do to Hieshi?!" demanded Lee as DarkNitemon flew at them. She stopped a few meters away, flapping her strong demon wings as she glanced down upon them.

"Oh? Your little friend. I'm afraid I blew him to pieces. And you're next."

"You bitch!" shouted Earnest. Lee and Jeska gasped. They'd never heard him swear before... he was usually so calm and collective. "I'll teach you a lesson about what it means to respect life! Leila!"

"GAIA THUNDER EARTHQUAKE!!!"

WarRenamon Valkyrie Mode split the floor between them and DarkNitemon and caused thunder to pour out of the artificial fissure! It all blasted directly into the demonic queen, causing her to scream in agony!

"Go now!" Earnest told them. "Leila can hold her off!"

"You can come with us!" pleaded Lee.

"I stay with Leila! I waited a long time to get her back and I'll stay with her to the end!" he told them. There was sorrow in his eyes, but he knew he had to do this. "Don't look back! Now get out of here!"

"... okay..." agreed Lee, solemnly. He didn't want to leave his friend behind, but Jeska grabbed his arm and dragged him along with her. Earnest faced DarkNitemon, who was still getting shock therapy from Leila.

"Leila, we can do this!"

"I know Earnest!" she replied. "We'll avenge Hieshi and everyone else this wench has poisoned with the Shadow!"

DarkNitemon was getting very ticked off that a low-class Digimon like Leila was even able to harm her. She put aside the pain and shakily aimed her finger at Valkyrie Mode.

"FROZEN SOUL!!!"

She blasted Leila with the same freezing darkness she used on Seraphimon and DeathXmon earlier, freezing her in place! The thunder stopped and DarkNitemon was given a moment to catch her breath.

"No! Let her go!" demanded Earnest.

DarkNitemon simply flew down and picked Earnest up by his neck. He gagged and kicked at her, but to no avail. She grinned psychotically.

"When I'm done with you... that Digimon will be the last thing on your pathetic mind..."

- - -

Jeska and Lee were getting very close to the blip representing Amara's D-Volver -- and the exit back to their world! Jeska glanced behind them to see Kokuwamon flying in the air after them and Morphlingmon running the furthest behind.

"Our forces are getting small!" shouted Jeska, worriedly. "You have to have some sort of plan by now!"

"I'm drawing a blank!"

"Don't these things always work out for you?!"

"The ratio of wins to losses is good!"

"I don't like the word ratio..." muttered Jeska. She checked the compass on her D-Volver and smiled. "We aren't far from the psychic bimbo! Then we're home free!"

Jeska slowed her pace so Morphlingmon could keep up with her and Lee and Kokuwamon took point with Lee's own compass. Lee then noticed Jeska was falling behind.

"Jeska! Don't separate from me! Because--"

The floor in between them burst open, cutting Lee off from Jeska! DarkNitemon hovered up from it, slowly. She was holding Leila's lance again, twirling it around like a baton.

"You know, I do like this lance..." she said, tossing it into the air and catching it with her arm in a javelin-throwing position. "Catch."

She hurled it at Jeska, who screamed! Luckily, Morphlingmon reflected it with his Invulnerability attack. Jeska gathered up all her courage and prepared to square off with that psycho.

"Lee! Keep running! I don't want any sappy goodbye! Just go! Go to the people you love!"

"I--"

"What did I JUST say? Don't make me kick your ass!"

Lee bit his lip and did as she told. Kokuwamon saluted Jeska and Morphlingmon, then turned to follow his partner. DarkNitemon laughed in amusement.

"Please. If the first two didn't make it, what makes you think you will? Not that it really matters to me anyway..."

"Well I'm counting on the fact that they've worn you down," Jeska told her, assuming a defensive stance. "Besides, you're a whore. I don't like those."

"Have it your way..."

DarkNitemon soared in Jeska direction, but Morphlingmon tackled her! DarkNitemon kicked the armored Digimon off, but he bounced off the wall and rebounded at her! He clothes lined her, knocking her over!

Unfortunately his efforts weren't enough. She leapt back up and grabbed him by the ankle. She whipped him across the hallway, sending him smashing through the wall! Jeska gasped and took a few steps away from the psycho Digimon.

"See what bravery gets you? Prepare yourself and your little mouth to join your friends in hell!" she yelled, smacking Jeska across the face and knocking her to the ground.

She extended long talons from each of her finger and aimed them downwards at Jeska. "Three down... two to go..."

- - -

Lee was the only one left. It was tearing at him inside how Jeska, Earnest, and Hieshi sacrificed themselves while he was forced to do nothing because Kokuwamon lost his strength after being bashed earlier. He balled his fists in anger.

"It's not fair, Kokuwamon! It should be Jeska here right now instead of me! I can't stand the thought of this! If I wasn't so busy being scared of DarkNitemon right now I'd probly break down and cry."

"Let's not worry about that right now, they did what they felt was right," Kokuwamon told him to try and calm him. "Look! There's Amara and Crystalmon!"

"Where are the others?" asked Amara.

"They're gone," replied Lee, darting past her. In the room she had found there was a small generator portal. It didn't appear to be active though. "Is this the machine?"

"Wait? They're gone?!" exclaimed Amara, running over to him. "What do you mean?"

"They fought. They lost. We'll lose too if we don't hurry! Turn this thing on!" shouted Lee. "Now!"

Amara gulped, intimidated by Lee's seriousness at this moment. She reached down and found the on switch. The air began to ripple between the top and bottom of the machine, signaling it was active.

"Irvine did bring this technology with him in case of an emergency, so it must work," Amara told Lee, remembering back to when she was with Lunn and Irvine. "He was being overly cautious about this whole thing.

"That's great," replied Lee calmly, a million shots going through his head. He knew what he was going to do. "Can I see Crystalmon for a second?"

The crystal cat walked over to Lee and he picked her up and swiftly threw her into the portal! Amara gasped in shock as Lee grabbed her by the arm and pulled her close to him. She looked upwards into his eyes, which seemed very confused.

"Lee... what are you...?"

"Tell Ali I'm sorry. Tell Ace and the others I'm sorry. And Amara... I'm sorry."

"For what? Lee-- no! Don't you dare--"

Lee turned and hurled her into the portal! Her scream of 'LEEEEE!!!" trailed off as she disappeared back into their own world. Kokuwamon gasped and landed next to Lee.

"Lee..."

"Kokuwamon, destroy the portal. DarkNitemon will not get into our world and harm Amara, Ali, or anyone!"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, now do it!"

"MINI-ELECTRO SHOCKER!!!" responded Kokuwamon, blasting the portal with electricity. It exploded in response and Lee just stared at it in dismay. "Lee, you had the choice to leave... but you sacrificed yourself to save them. I've never seen you be so mature."

"We aren't dead yet! We'll avenge the others! Now let's fuse! I know you have the energy in you somewhere!"

Kokuwamon attempted to merge with Lee... but couldn't. He looked up at Lee sadly.

"Sorry... nope."

"What?!"

A shadow was cast of them, and they turned to see DarkNitemon standing in the doorway. They both froze.

"J-Jeska... is..."

"Gone. And so are you."

- - -

Amara found herself laying on the ground back in Tamur. She groaned and pulled herself up, checking her surroundings. Crystalmon was laying a little bit away from her, recovering from the world warp. She determined she was in Central Park, laying on the grass.

"Ugh... no... I can't believe Lee did that! What a moron!" she said to herself, almost crying. "Now I'll never see him agai-- What? I sense... pain."

Amara focused her thoughts, trying to read the minds of the familiar ones that were shooting through her head, crying for help. It didn't take long before she recognized them.

"Ali... and Ace... and Nathan and Arik! They're in trouble! They.. won't make it...!" she gasped. She leapt to her feet and began to wake Crystalmon.

"Personally... I don't care what happens to Ali. It'd be a blessing if she was out of my way. But Lee if he was still with us... would be crushed if anything happened to those four! I'll save them for you Lee! I promise you that!"

Shaking off her nervousness, Amara and Crystalmon began to make a mad dash for the harbor...

- - -

DarkNitemon now stood alone. The only breathing thing left in Alpha Server. She glanced down at the wrecked transporter.

"Looks like my wretched spawn escaped from my clutches..." she muttered, half-annoyed, half-amused. "That's alright. It will be all the more fun to hunt her down once I escape from the prison that is this world."

She spread her wings and began to take to the sky. She glanced up at the orb that contained Seraphimon and DeathXmon.

"All I have to do is find a way... and perhaps using their power will help me..."


End file.
